Monochrome Love
by Hikaru-wa-shiawase-eien-ni
Summary: In a world in which everything is monochrome until someone meets their soulmate, colors explode in that moment, Quinn is the founder and head of Fabray Records and is known for her cold and almost ruthless ways of making deals for business. The only people she's ever known to show emotion around are her two best friends until a certain diva joins as the newest recording artist.
1. Just Passing By

Chapter 1

Just Passing By

X

 _The world is black, white, and gray for everyone who has yet to meet their soulmate and until that one moment everything in the world seems a bit dull without colors. The moment two soulmates encounter each other, whether their eyes meet or not, their world will become colorful and even if the two soulmates didn't look at each other directly they will know that they have encountered each other however briefly and subtle the meeting was._

Quinn Fabray was seated in her office going over paper work when someone burst into her office.

"Q! Have you heard about the newest signed artist under us? She's got _pipes!_ I mean, she's tiny as heck but she can really sing!" Santana said, not even bothering to hide her excitement. "I heard that she's some kind of Broadway type who is considered the hottest Broadway Star from the last few years when she first hit it big."

"And?" Quinn asked with only slight exasperation, "Why should I care about someone I don't even know?"

Santana rolled her eyes, "because she's _really_ good. I mean we've got some really good artists under your representation. Mercedes Jones is an R &B Queen, Sam Evans is Country Gold, and Noah Puckerman is like the new Barry Manilow. But this … this girl is even better than _all of them_ combined!"

Quinn sighed as she finally put her paperwork down and looked up at her best friend with a look that said she was indulging Santana right now. "Okay, so she's better than everyone I currently have a contract with but why exactly do you want me to talk to her so badly?" Quinn asked, taking the bait.

There was a moment where they just looked at each other, "she could be the one you're meant to love Quinn. I know that you haven't really ever been the type to go looking, you're not supposed to anyways, but don't you want to find the one, the person who will make your life brighter and take away the dullness, the monotony of black, white, and gray and turn it into a world of colors? Don't you want that?" Santana explained softly.

Quinn squeezed her eyes shut tightly at the mention of something they had been through before. She took a deep breath in and let it out slowly. "Can you please quit saying things like that? I know, I get it, the whole life is so much better after you find your soul mate thing. It's the way the world works and it makes life so much better, makes living, and for you, breadsticks taste even better than they already do. And you even say things about colors like green and you keep telling me it's awesome that instead of seeing different shades of gray or black for eye colors you can actually _see_ someone's eye colors and you like to coordinate my outfits because apparently I dress 'blindly' every morning without knowing what colors I'm wearing. You've been telling me for the last few years that I'm a blonde and so is Britt but my eyes are hazel and hers are blue. I still don't know what those colors look like but I'm not waiting for it to happen out of nowhere. Anyway, S, I need to finish this paper work and then I'll go introduce myself to her okay?"

Just then someone came into the office without knocking or warning and tackled Santana. "SAN! Guess what, guess what?" Brittany asked excitedly, smiling at her lover and destined one with a smile on her face.

Santana smiled back softly, "what is it Britt?"

"The new artist at the company is a great dancer, not as good as Q though, and she wants me to help her with some dance choreography for some songs she's working on! She's really nice even though she talks a lot and kind of uh, says a lot of words I don't know. She even gave me a calendar with some big words with the definition and everything! Today's word is loquacious and it means someone who talks a lot! I think that Rachel is a loquacious person, San!" Brittany smiled widely and proudly at herself for remembering the word she'd just learned earlier today.

"Good job, Britt! You used it right!" Santana gave Brittany a quick congratulatory peck on the lips before moving her attention back to Quinn. "I expect you to talk to her before lunch because if you don't I'll bring her up here personally and you know how that goes," she said with a devious smirk on her face.

Quinn rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Tell her to go to conference room B in an hour and I'll be there and meet the damn woman you're practically drooling over."

Santana flushed a dark red that was visible over her tan, "I am _not_ drooling over her! She's just got an amazing voice and I appreciate good singers. I _am_ your biggest talent scout and it _is_ part of my job to find you the best voices to bolster the company's name. We're known for being fair and looking for _real_ talent. I never saw her on Broadway but I heard her singing as a guest on some talk show last week and I had to get her info because she was _that good_ Q." Quinn had never heard her friend talk about any other client she had signed like this before so she gave her a look, calculating and analytical.

"Fine, bump it up to half an hour from now. I'll meet her in Conference Room B in half an hour and give her a _personal_ tour if she's half as good as you say she is. I still need to finish this paperwork but I can manage it in at least half that time if you leave me in peace now to go over it." And with that Quinn went back to her paperwork but she knew that Santana was smirking at her and it was irritating her. Damn her.

X

Quinn usually preferred to take the stairs over the elevator and today was no exception. Almost no one else ever took these stairs because they would prefer waiting for the elevator and that elevator made her feel too claustrophobic with all of the other people pushing up against her. Quinn already had to feel trapped in such a tiny enclosed space but to have other people pressing up against her would have been too much for her. Even if no one was too close to her she still would have felt as if there wasn't enough space and she couldn't deal with that.

It was ten minutes before she was supposed to meet with her newly signed artist and so she walked to her office as she read the paper, attention almost completely absorbed by the paper.

 _Rachel Barbra Berry:_

 _Age 24, DOB Decemeber 18, 1994_

 _Height: 5' 2'_

 _Vocal Range: Alto, Mezzo Soprano, Soprano_

 _Rachel Barbra Berry was first known to be on stage for an Off-Broadway show at 20 years old and brought major success as the lead and the show became an on Broadway show after only a few weeks worth of shows. She is known for her flawless acting abilities, powerful vocals, and is usually the best dancer in the ensemble. Ever since she originated her own role at 22 no one has been able to stop the vocal powerhouse from winning her first Tony for her originated role at 22 years old. Not long after she won an Oscar for the release of the Theatrical Movie made for her originating role of Only One Hope Remains. Barely a year later Rachel Barbra Berry won an Emmy award for appearing in the, thoroughly applauded, genius of Torn Plans._

Quinn was so absorbed in reading that she barely glanced up with an apology when someone bumped into her and she didn't notice that the world had become colorful until she reached for the doorknob to the conference room and realized that she was looking at a color that wasn't black, gray, or white. She looked up from the black and white paper and frantically looked around her for someone else having a similar reaction to her slight freak out over the colors. Well, internally she was freaking out and externally she seemed to be calmly taking in her surroundings and searching for the person she had bumped into earlier. It couldn't possibly have been anyone else but the person who had bumped into her earlier when she was walking to the conference room. She saw no one in the hallways and no one else had been walking around this area other than the person she bumped into. Quinn looked down at her watch and realized that she didn't have the time to look for the person she was sure was her destined lover because she was cutting it close to the meeting room as it was. Sighing she trudged back to the meeting room.

Unbeknown to both women Rachel was having a similar problem. She was also searching for the person who had to be her soul mate because she realized that the ground she had been looking at was no longer an almost black color, it was a color she had never seen before. When she looked around, after having run into someone, she saw someone with hair color that was very light, and in the monochrome world would have been a light gray that was nearly white, disappear and it was then she realized that it was her soul mate she had run into and now she needed to catch up to her. Rachel wasn't sure where she was going to begin with, having become lost in the maze that was Fabray Records. She was supposed to go to conference room B for the meeting with the owner herself but she had gotten lost after someone else had given her directions, quite unclearly, to where the room for the meeting was. She had been wandering aimlessly in search of the illusive room. There were many hallways and only next to the doors were there actually signs marking the rooms and so it was difficult for Rachel to find the room she was supposed to be in within the next 10 minutes.

While Rachel had been wandering around she had run into someone reading some paperwork and they apologized to each other. This person had been wearing all white, a smart move in a monochromatic world, and so Rachel thought nothing of it until she realized, when she looked down at the ground, that the tiling on this floor was of many colors she had never seen before. There was some gray but there were also other colors she didn't know, some lighter colors and some black lines in between the tiles. It was this moment that she knew the woman, dressed in all white, she had bumped shoulders with was the one she had been waiting for her whole life, her soul mate. Rachel was searching almost frantically for the mystery woman she knew had to be her soul mate, someone she had been waiting to meet for more than 24 years of her life. She finally gave up when she somehow, miraculously in her opinion, stumbled on a room labeled, Conference Room B. Rachel had been so lost in her musings that she didn't realize that someone else was approaching her. This person was only slightly out of breath when they reached her and the reaction was almost immediate, a soft gasp left the woman coming closer to where Rachel was standing and completely obliviously to this other woman's turmoil. When Rachel turned around to see if there was anyone else around who could help her she happened to glance at the woman standing just a mere foot away from her, looking at her with an expression she couldn't read.

Both women stared at each other in complete awe of how beautiful they found each other. Rachel was openly looking at the woman before her while Quinn only looked at Rachel as if she were merely wondering who she was, no emotion could be read on her face at all. The staring match was broken by Quinn, who cleared her throat before speaking. "Are you the Rachel Barbra Berry my Head of Talent Management, Santana Lopez, recruited just a few days ago?" Quinn asked formally, her gaze was so piercing and intense Rachel didn't know if she looked at everyone that way or not. If she did the diva would be insanely jealous of all of those people.

Clearing her throat before answering, she knew her voice would come out a bit strangely if she didn't, Rachel nodded her head before replying verbally. "Yes, that would be me. I believe you must be the head of Fabray Records then? I apologize for not being here earlier but I wasn't given clear directions to this room by the person who was supposed to lead me here. In fact, I'm almost positive that they were told to lead me to the room but they disregarded those instructions and merely told me to take the elevator to the 8th floor and walk down the hallway until I found the right room." Rachel hadn't meant to let all of this slip but she was nervous and talking to cover up her nervousness. Quinn's face showed no flicker of emotions as she listened to the explanation that Rachel gave and made a mental note to find the associate responsible for such deplorable behavior.

"Did you happen to catch their name, Miss Berry?" Quinn asked, her voice not giving away her intentions in the least.

Rachel's face became thoughtful as she went through her memories. Her face scrunched up in thought and Rachel actually tapped a finger on her chin in thought, something Quinn didn't think she ever saw anyone else she'd ever met doing before. Quinn couldn't help but find the face she made cute but her face gave nothing away as she waited for the beautiful woman before her to answer. Finally Rachel brought her finger away from her face and snapped it as she made an 'aha' face. "I believe their name was Jesse St. Jones … or something like that." Quinn couldn't help the little snort that escaped her when she heard Rachel say the wrong last name. She couldn't help it, it was funny and she definitely had had her eye on him for a while for such behavior. Both Sebastian Smythe and Jesse St. James were known for being extremely unprofessional employees and she had wanted to fire them for quite some time now but she wanted a better reason than her immense dislike of the two individuals to do so. And now here it was, the perfect opportunity had presented itself. She finally had proof that they were rude employees and she would cite the reason for their being fired as receiving complaints from potential clients about their lack of professionalism and discourteousness. They would never be hired by someone in the business again if she could help it.

"Thank you, Miss Berry. I promise that Jesse St. Jackass … I mean Jesse St. James won't be bothering you or any future potential clients again." Quinn said coldly and when Rachel gave an indelicate snort as well Quinn let out a small smile in response to her mirth. "I apologize for the harsh, foul language but I've never liked that man and he has never liked me either, so we're in mutual dislike but he always tries to make the appearance of someone who wants to be in my good graces. You should have seen him when we first met. He was completely unaware of the fact that I am actually the head of this company and had the audacity to make himself out to be more important than he was. It was about four years ago when he had first joined this company as an entry level employee. I was sitting in one of the conference rooms and he happened to walk the clients into the wrong room to begin with because mine was clearly marked as one that said it was booked until noon and it was barely 11 when he opened the door to the room and announced that they were to meet with the Head of Talent Management Santana Lopez in this room." Rachel was completely enraptured by the woman's story. "He looked inside, saw me, and asked the clients to wait a moment while he dealt with someone who was clearly in the wrong room. As soon as he stepped inside he asked me who the hell I was and why I was in the conference meeting room that Santana Lopez was supposed to be in. I laughed in his face and asked him if he knew how to read. He was indignant and asked me if I knew how important he was to Fabray Records. He tried to imply that he was one of the managerial employees in the company and asked me if I was higher up than that. I asked him what he would do if the head of Fabray Records heard him say such a thing and his response was that she knew exactly who he was and how much of an asset he was to the company. I asked him what his name was and he, stupidly, replied with his full name, Jesse St. James. I laughed at him and introduced myself as Quinn Fabray, founder and head of Fabray Records and asked him what exactly it was I thought of him and how I was supposed to know who he was before this moment." Quinn stopped there, seeing the way Rachel was completely riveted by the story she was telling.

"What happened next?" she asked eagerly.

Quinn was pleased to see that Rachel was so immersed in what she was saying. It was a good feeling. "Well, he completely paled and started groveling and apologizing for not realizing who I was immediately. He went so far as to beg me to let him keep his job and I think at one point he cried. I asked him why he thought he deserved to keep a job at my company after so spectacularly making not only a complete fool of himself but acting so pompously towards me and lying about his position at the company. He told me that he knows talent when he hears it because he was formerly a part of a show choir and he had won four national show choir championships as the lead vocalist of said show choir. I decided that I would give him a chance but he had better never step out of line like that again and ever since that day I've been looking a reason, any reason, to prove that he doesn't deserve to work at my company because I have a certain image I want to uphold at this company and his arrogance is not one of them. And now that you've told me how he treated you earlier I'd like to have a little chat with him about his behavior towards you."

Upon hearing this Rachel wasn't sure if it meant Quinn was going to fire him or not but she wanted to know. "You're not … going to fire him are you, um, Miss Fabray?" Rachel asked tentatively, unsure of how she was supposed to address the woman.

"I won't say anything more than just the fact that I am going to have a discussion with him later on. And you can just call me Quinn, Miss Berry."

"Then you may refer to me as Rachel … Quinn." Rachel smiled at the woman who, for some reason she couldn't fathom, smiled back. She had never reacted this way to anyone other than Brittany. Santana was someone Quinn was more inclined to scowl at than smile and no one could help but smile around the effervescent Brittany S. Pierce, not even Satan incarnate Santana Lopez could. Well, it was sort of cheating considering they were each other's soulmates. It still counted in Quinn's book though.

Nervous as Quinn was she was also curious about something, something that Santana had somehow inadvertently predicted this morning. Quinn couldn't find the courage to ask though and so she said something else. "Shall we proceed?"

"I'm quite excited because I've heard many great things about your record label, Quinn."

X

The meeting didn't take very long and Quinn actually found herself smiling so much that her cheeks hurt because she wasn't used to such a feeling, the effort it took to smile was a bit strange for Quinn. She wanted to know more than ever if Rachel was the one she had been waiting for, for nearly 25 years of her life. She was more than a little curious but she couldn't bring herself to ask Rachel if she was the one she had bumped into in the hallway because that would answer the question of whether Rachel was her soulmate or not. She was almost one hundred percent certain that Rachel was the only one wandering around the hallway earlier because the hallways were empty and sound traveled in the empty halls. Not only that, but Rachel admitted to having been lost and wandering the hallways until she just happened to stumble upon the room by chance earlier. That meant she had to have been the only one in the hallway that Quinn could have possibly bumped into before the world exploded into such vibrant colors and she knew that meant that the monotony of life was over and now she could live life with a kind of vibrancy that Santana was always talking about. Rather it was mostly Brittany and Santana only occasionally said something about it because she didn't like mushy things or being 'sappy' but when Santana did say something about it, boy was she ever waxing poetic about it. It was almost cute that Santana was a secretly romantic person at heart.

Rachel couldn't help but find this stunning woman extremely attractive and she knew, without a doubt, that she wanted to know more about this woman standing next to her and showing her around the building when she could have easily found another employee to do so. Rachel wasn't sure if she was the one she was looking for, the person she had bumped into, but she couldn't help but hope that it was this gorgeous and kind woman playing tour guide when she was the owner and could easily have only made a contract and left it at that but was instead leading her around like it was no big deal when Rachel was sure that Quinn was the kind of person who didn't typically take the time to do such things. Quinn was known for being a ruthless business woman but a very fair employer and the story Quinn told Rachel earlier of her first encounter with Jesse St. Johns just proved it to her.

Before Quinn could leave her on her own at the lobby area Rachel gently tugged on Quinn's sleeve, something that Quinn would normally _never_ tolerate anyone else other than Brittany doing. "If you're not … busy around noon … is there any chance you might have the time to perhaps … maybe … get coffee or … lunch with me?" Rachel was a normally intense, blunt person but she found herself becoming shy and awkward around beautiful woman, like a school girl around her crush.

Giving Rachel a soft, affectionate smile, one that many of the employees milling about noticed and sort of gawked at the sight of such an adoring smile from their employer to someone who wasn't Brittany. It was unheard of and more than enough reason for the majority of them to stare at the sight for just a few moments before resuming business as usual and well before the woman noticed and turned her Ice Queen charms on them for not working. They didn't want to be the next Jesse St. James. "I would love to do both with you. Did you have anywhere in mind?"

She was blushing and she knew it. She was thankful for having rather dark skin and hoped that Quinn couldn't see the flush of her warm cheeks. She'd seen it happen to someone with lighter skin before, their cheeks and sometimes neck becoming a darker shade then the rest of them and those who could see color often referred to this phenomena as blushing. "Well, I would like for you to decide since it is your time, more than mine that is in demand at the current moment."

A bigger smile, something even Brittany had never seen, broke out on Quinn's features. They were quite lovely features, they were. "Well … I do happen to know that you're a Vegan, Rachel, so I'm sure that I have the perfect place in mind for us to dine together in about an hour." The surprise on Rachel's face caused Quinn to grin even wider. It made Rachel wonder why everyone seemed to think the blonde was so cold when she had been nothing but warm to Rachel since they first encountered each other about her contract.

"How did you know?" Rachel's shocked face was adorable to Quinn. She couldn't help but find many things endearing about the woman she was almost 100% sure was her soulmate.

"Well, I just so happened to be reading the profile Santana comprised for me as per my request and it was quite long, two and a half pages. Take it as a compliment that she wrote so much because for the most part Santana tries to compile it so that it all fits into one page because she doesn't like to waste her time unnecessarily, so the fact that she wrote so much about you means that she really wanted you to sign with us here. So, we'll meet here in about an hour? I would like to surprise you with where we're eating if that's okay with you?" Rachel nodded her head vigorously and Quinn found that endearing as well.

"I'll see you then!" Rachel waved enthusiastically as Quinn left, smiling at Rachel one last time. Chuckling as they parted ways Quinn nodded her head and headed off to deal with less pleasant company.

X

When she arrived at her office she called for Jesse's cell phone from her office. Once he picked up she didn't let him even greet her before she spoke into the phone, "come up to my office immediately St. James," she hung up before he could say a word and within five minutes of her phone call he was panting and out of breath in front of her office door. "Enter," she said before he could so much as catch his breath or knock on the door. "I would like to speak with you about something St. James. Have a seat on the armchair so we can talk like civilized people." Quinn's voice was so cold Jesse felt shivers run up and down his spine. He knew the woman was ruthless and cutthroat only to keep her business up and running but she was really good to her employees. He didn't like the sound of her voice or the cold fury in her eyes as he gazed at her in monochrome. The fact that she was so quiet scared him. He liked it better when someone was angry and yelling instead of her calm, collected anger.

"Y-yes, Miss Fabray." He had learned a long time ago to never sound condescending around the woman again. The only reason he was still allowed to work here, and he knew it, was because she gave him a second chance but she never allowed him many advances in the company. His official title was that of being a part of the Client Happiness Crew but he knew that he was really still in a barely above entry level work in the company. He had no one but himself to blame for his utter stupidity in his blunder from so many years ago. Quinn's voice brought him back to the present.

"I had a meeting today with a client who told me about your less than polite manner towards her. She was, at the time, a _potential_ client. I suppose you know what the difference between _potential_ client and an _actual_ client is … correct St. James?" He nodded his head, knowing not to speak unless she told him she wanted an answer out of his mouth. "Well, I'm getting the feeling that you forgot because this _potential_ client told me you were _supposed to_ guide her to the conference room she was meeting me in, _not_ to give her useless vague directions to the room in question, St. James. A client can be kept if they are already familiar with us a _potential_ client can leave us at any point in time before signing a contract due to _negligent_ behavior such as the one you displayed St. _Jackass_. So, I would like to ask you, what reason could I _possibly_ want to keep you within this company Jesse St. Stupid?" He knew he was in deep shit because he had never seen or heard his employer sound so unnervingly cold or swear for that matter. He must have done something to really piss her off because the look on her face was one he had never seen before. When he had been rude to her years ago, she didn't even look nearly as angry as she did now.

Jesse swallowed hard as he looked at the quietly angry woman seated before him. "I … I … may I ask what I did wrong today?" his voice was barely above a whisper but Quinn heard him clearly.

"The potential client I had a meeting with today was Rachel Barbra Berry and she was almost late because she wasn't shown directly to the room in which our meeting was to take place barely half an hour ago. She told me that it was due to a worker she believed to be named Jesse St. Jones and there are no other employees here with a name relatively similar to yours and that leaves me with a single conclusion. You mistreated a potential client, someone who had every right not to sign a contract with my company because of your uncouth manners. Santana Lopez head hunts talent St. Slow to comprehend. She looks for only the best to join this company and she told me that out of all of the people she has _personally head hunted_ that Miss Berry is the best because of her talented voice. After I watched a live performance of hers I was more than inclined to agree to Santana's assessment and because your inability to do your _job_ right I could have lost her! I am firing you as of right now, your termination has already been completed and access card no longer works. I am also going to make sure you can never work in this business again because you lack not only professionalism but also because of this: if you cannot listen to orders from the _highest_ chain of command in a company who will you listen to? Your mother? Maybe your own parents but whatever the case, you have been terminated and there's no way you can tell me or any other potential employer that you quit from this job because I have already made sure your files reflect your lack of hard work for my company. You may now leave my office St. James." With that Jesse sat stunned for several moments before he left quietly. He was never cut out for this job anyways because he really couldn't care less about other people's happiness, so he left with wobbling footsteps, wondering what he could possibly do to find another job now.

With that taken care of Quinn now only had one kiss up of epic proportions to deal with in her company. One less idiot to deal with, one more to go. Quinn shook her head when she realized something rather important. She had never asked Rachel for her phone number. Then again she was sure Santana had to have the woman's number because they had to have had some contact in order for Rachel to have made it to Quinn's record company.

Rachel was sitting downstairs in the lobby area lamenting the same problem. That and she needed to call both Kurt and Blaine, who was she kidding, call one and the other was bound to be there to listen in on the conversation. The were inseparable men. She needed to tell them that she had finally found her one and she needed to ask Kurt about colors seeing as she had no idea what was what, never having seen anything so beautiful before in her life. She was more than happy by herself when someone else came along to make this day even better.

"Hi Rachel! What are you doing down here?" Brittany exclaimed. Rachel couldn't wait to tell the bubbly blonde all about it. Kurt could wait since she could ask the blonde about colors while she was there waiting for Quinn to meet up with her for lunch and some coffee. Rachel knew only one thing about her soulmate and it was that they were someone who worked at Fabray Records and they had yellow hair and had been wearing what seemed like all white to her. Well, technically she knew two things about her soulmate because she also knew her soulmate was a woman from the brief glance she had given the woman who had bumped into her when the world exploded into colors.

X

So this is the first chapter! It is a bit boring in my opinion but please tell me your thoughts in a review if you're so inclined! I hope the next chapter is more exciting for everyone! I always forget to say this whenever I write other stories so I appreciate all reviewers, even unsigned guest reviews are greatly appreciated!^^

姫宮光る


	2. Complications

Chapter 2

Complications

X

"Okay, so … your hair is called blonde even though technically it's a yellow color and mine is brown but I'm called a brunette? Also your eyes are blue, mine are brown, my skin is tan, and Quinn is also a blonde, and she has hazel eyes because they aren't quite green or brown and have some gold flecks in them? I must admit that she has a very beautiful and appealing eye color. Sometimes, depending on her head's angle, it looked like it was green and gold, but then at other angles they were a green and brown. They are just _very_ attractive features."

"What is?" Quinn asked, coming up from behind Rachel, she had already heard what Rachel was saying and she couldn't help but stand and listen because Rachel was completely adorable.

"N-nothing important! I was just learning colors and … and how to refer to different hair colors, Quinn!" Rachel said, her stuttering was completely endearing to the blonde. She had a similar lesson with Santana but hers, unfortunately, wasn't as enjoyable because Santana took out some kind of chart, Quinn wasn't sure why she had one just laying around in her desk, and told her that it was a color chart and to memorize it her own damn self. She did, however, congratulate Quinn in a surprising manner when she learned of Quinn's newfound ability to see colors by wrapping her up in a warm hug and whispering 'congratulations Q' into her ear. Almost as soon as Quinn was enveloped in the hug she was devoid of it again and Santana acted as if it had never happened. She also promptly took out her color chart for Quinn and Quinn realized it was almost as if Santana had been waiting for a while now to give her that chart. That sly, Latina woman!

Smiling and gazing at Rachel affectionately in a way that Brittany had never seen before, Quinn's happiness was radiating off of her and a few employees of the company who actually witnessed it were quite surprised. They had never seen the company's founder and owner so happy before, so warm and approachable. Sure, she wasn't a mean woman and they were actually quite happy with how fair she was with pay, pensions, and overall employee benefits but she just had a cold exterior that made her very intimidating. Some people had been there since she started the company at a young age, having a tragic story of losing her parents when she was still in college and inheriting a large sum of money. She had used that money to finish her degree out for business and started this company as a young, fresh out of college student and turned it into a success story from the tragedy that befell her. Perhaps it was part of the reason she seemed so cold and daunting to her employees other than Brittany and Santana. Even Mike, Quinn's favorite security guard and friend outside of work, found Quinn slightly frightening but they got along because they were both quiet people, introverts, and they understood each other.

Quinn walked over to the seat Rachel was sitting in and held her hand out, "shall we get going? I do want to go there before their lunch rush really sets in." Rachel took the offered hand and smiled shyly up at the woman she was finding herself more and more attracted to with every interaction they had.

Turning to Brittany, Rachel gave her a big grin, "thank you for your help with colors Brittany! I'll probably see you around when I'm ready to start recording some songs in a few weeks! Maybe even earlier than that." Brittany pulled Rachel into a bear hug and even went as far as to lift Rachel and twirl her around, causing the most adorable and endearing giggle Quinn had ever heard to leave Rachel's lips, before setting her down a little unsteadily. They both stood for a moment to gather their bearings, considering Brittany had given them both several twirls they were a bit dizzy, before Quinn once again took Rachel by the hand. "That was some hug, huh?" Rachel asked when they had gone out of the doors.

A soft chuckle left Quinn's lips as she nodded her head in agreement, "Brittany sure is something else, isn't she? She actually is still convinced that her cat, Lord Tubbington, is both able to smoke and speak and is often the cause of many … unfortunate occurrences in her home. To say that she has amusing, if not off the wall stories, is quite the understatement."

Rachel let out an incredulous laugh, "are you being serious? She really believes that her cat is responsible for 'unfortunate occurrences' around her house?" It wasn't Rachel making fun of Brittany in the least but more that Rachel almost couldn't believe that Brittany truly thought her cat to be the cause of those 'unfortunate occurrences'.

"Well, I do have to admit that Lord Tubbington is quite the character and whenever I'm at her house … well, it almost seems like it isn't quite so farfetched for him to be responsible for certain things that she says he's done. But there are certain things that I'm sure there is no plausible _way_ he could be responsible for considering he is a cat without opposable thumbs. I don't really know for sure if certain things are her exaggerating or not but … it's something that Brittany has always believed and so Santana and I don't ever say anything about it not being possible no matter how outlandish her story is."

They walked on in silence after Rachel nodded her understanding and though they both noticed that their hands were still linked, neither commented on it because they didn't want to let go. It was only a few more minutes before they stopped in front of a very nice looking restaurant with the words _Sunshine's Vegan Best_ on the building in unassuming but attractive letters. Rachel was very excited now, "I like it already and I haven't even been seated yet!" Quinn was glad that Rachel was being so positive about where they were eating because her experience with food was Santana's insistence on eating somewhere with breadsticks and Brittany was a bit of a picky eater, pickier than Santana surprisingly, and usually only liked places with a kid's menu available. Quinn was glad that Rachel was so agreeable about her restaurant choice. Part of it was because she was used to pickier people and another part was because she really wanted Rachel to approve. Quinn was convinced that Rachel was her soulmate but she just didn't have the courage to say anything just yet.

Their lunch was quiet enjoyable with them trading horror stories about their best friends. For Rachel, it was that Kurt used to be one of her so called 'frenemies' in high school because they had been vying for the affections of the same boy because they had both been crushing on him. And also, as hard as it might be to believe, Rachel wasn't quite as fashionable because she grew up with two gay dads who wore suits and dressy clothes, Leroy, and argyle and sweater vests, Hiram. Therefore that didn't translate to Rachel wearing anything much different from them other than her having skirts with her argyle. As for Quinn, her stories mostly consisted of Santana's satanic nature hiding a big fluffy puppy underneath it all and Brittany being an unwittingly good at attracting impossibly unfortunate incidences. When they were in high school together they had all been cheerleaders and their cheerleading coach was the devil's spawn when it came to training and the fact that they had been left in the middle of Lake Eerie, in the boat in the middle of the lake, and were told to travel back to the shore on their own before she departed for the shore herself on her manually driven boat left Rachel in incredulousness and laughter. Rachel normally wouldn't have laughed but some of Santana's antics and Brittany's off the wall, bizarre comments left her in stitches from an otherwise insane situation that she was sure must have been illegal.

"I can assure you that should she ever be taken in by an insane asylum they'd return her because there is no controlling that woman. I mean, even the principal of our school was terrified of her because there seemed to be nothing she didn't know and she was constantly blackmailing him with things she knew. She was seriously a nightmare and I don't know how she's never been arrested before but I suppose that it could be because she seems to know and have dirt on _everyone_ and she really knows how to use it against them. I don't know how I survived four years on her cheerleading squad let alone as her cheerleading captain. She also has this master cleanse that I swear has to be illegal to make because some of the ingredients are questionable." Rachel's mouth was gaped completely open as she listened intently to Quinn speaking about a woman who had to be crazy to do all of the things she did to high school teenagers. There was no way this woman was in any way sane.

"How was she not arrested even if she had so called blackmail material on the local police officers? Surely there was someone willing to step up and take charge of this completely mentally unstable woman who is obviously mistreating a large group of teenagers?" Quinn shook her head and Rachel's mouth gaped open for a moment with such incredulousness.

"Be careful, your mouth is open so wide I'm sure a fly could land on your tongue and you might accidentally swallow it." Quinn didn't know who this woman was, other than her highly suspecting that this woman was the one she had been waiting for since birth, but she was quite sure she hadn't really ever purposely teased someone before in her life. Well, more like she hadn't been able to feel much joy in her life since her parents' death just barely six years ago the day she had her last final. It had been a terrible day when the news finally came just a scant hour after her last final for her classes and she remembered nearly dying driving to the hospital just to hold her mother's hand one last time before the life left her eyes. Her father had died almost immediately because he blocked the gunshot that would have otherwise killed his soulmate immediately had he not stepped in front of her protectively. She had fallen to the ground with him and the murderer ran off with the wallet of the man he killed in a desperate attempt for a fix. He never got his fix because all that was in the wallet was a few cards and some pictures of his family. The man was caught when he attempted to take cash out at an ATM several days later and despite his confession to everything and being put in jail, his insincerity was what sent Quinn's blood boiling at this man's trial.

Snapping out of her thoughts Quinn looked up to a concerned Rachel who had placed a hand upon Quinn's own laying on the table gently and the look in her eyes caused Quinn's heart to lurch with emotion. "You seemed to drift off somewhere far away, some place sad that you shouldn't be thinking about with me here with you." Rachel's warm smile and soft tone made Quinn's lips twitch into another involuntary, at least it would be if not for the fact that it happened so easily and naturally, genuine smile.

The look Quinn gave Rachel caused something in Rachel's heart to scream at her, something that almost seemed to react in her very core, that something about Quinn was special. "I'm sorry for worrying you, Rachel. I just …" Quinn sighed softly, painfully. "I was thinking about my parents … about everything that's happened in the last six years, about everything that's changed for me in all those years. I didn't inherit this company, as you know I'm sure. I started it nearly five years ago after I graduated college and it really hit off because the people I signed back then became pretty successful. My father … he used to tell me that I really had an eye for talent because I was a bit ahead of my years. I actually graduated college at 20 because I skipped two grades."

When Rachel heard Quinn use her words in past tense she wondered if what she thought was true, "when you say that your father used to say those things … do you mean?" At Quinn's nod Rachel's hold on Quinn's hand tightened in a comforting manner. "Oh, Quinn, it must have been hard on you to lose him."

"I felt like I lost everything that day more than six years ago. I just … I was so angry for a while after holding my mother's hand one last time before she breathed her goodbyes to me and I just didn't know what to do with myself. It was the semester before I graduated and they are both gone now, leaving only me behind with nothing but one last 'I love you,' to hold me over forever." Quinn's face showed such sorrow as she spoke, "I think if not for Brittany and Santana … I might have died with them that day or several days later because I was so distraught. They watched me change, they saw me become who I am today because of my parents' death and though they tried … I still think a small part of me died with them, died in the ER holding my mother's cold hand for the last time." Rachel looked like she wanted to say something but seemed to not know what to say. "I'm quite sure that I haven't really been able to feel as carefree as I have today, so I want to tell you … thank you, for today. It means more to me than you know that I was able to feel the way I am feeling today, Rachel."

Rachel's face flushed as Quinn spoke and Rachel felt some kind of stirring that seemed soul deep, probing her, trying to tell her something that felt very important and was consuming in a gentle and warm way. "I haven't ever felt this way before in my entire life either."

Before they could continue speaking to each other someone approached their table rather abruptly. "Quinn, is that you Quinn Fabray?" a voice asked from just behind Rachel's seat. They both looked up to see a rather pretty girl standing just a few feet away from Rachel's chair and looking at Quinn intently. "It is you, isn't it? I haven't seen you in so long!" Rachel saw the transformation take place in Quinn. One moment Quinn's face was full of warmth and seemingly in the next her face had become void of all emotions and any trace of welcoming was gone as she addressed the woman who had approached their table.

"Yes, it's been quite some time Miss Rose." It was merely a statement and nothing more but the chilly reception was surprising to Rachel. Quinn had been nothing but kind and personable with her, so seeing her indifference towards this woman was bizarre and almost out of place.

Marley Rose looked like someone who was used to Quinn's frosty exterior, completely unfazed by it. "I see you haven't changed since we last saw each other about five years ago I believe." She paused and gave Quinn a meaningful look, "I would have thought that … well, I hoped that you would be a bit different now that there has been some time in between since we last saw each other. I suppose that was too much to ask?"

Quinn refused to look away from the eyes of the woman who just didn't know when to quit. "I don't know why you hoped for a warmer reception from me but clearly you're a delusional woman because I've already found what I'm looking for, or rather, who I was looking for and you need to leave me be. What I told you back then is still true now no matter what you think Miss … Rose." The tone Quinn's voice took was maybe a bit harsh but Rachel knew that Quinn was notorious for being cold to almost everyone, keeping them all at a distance, long before she ever signed on as a talent to Fabray Records. The few interviews Quinn had ever accepted for live television showed as much.

Shaking her head, the woman spoke again, "but how do you know if it is true or not? What if there's a mistake or … or it's just … wrong somehow if you don't try to find your own way towards that kind of happiness, Quinn?" Clearly, the woman was trying to be subtle and not give away what she was attempting to discuss with Quinn because Rachel wasn't sure what she was referring to but she did have her suspicions.

The woman sounded desperate but Quinn didn't care in the least. "Look, clearly I have not changed my stance and I honestly couldn't care less about what you think on this subject matter. I didn't care five years ago, I still don't care now Miss Rose because, I have already found her and my world has never felt more alive, more beautiful. There is absolutely _nothing_ you can say that will cause me to stray from the path that has already been chosen for me and I will do this right, I will make it impossible for her to say no to me and that's my final word on this subject. If you wish to join Fabray Records, I wouldn't hold your breath because quite honestly, I'm doing quite well with the few artists I already have signed with me and I have no need to add someone like you to my company. Find someone else who needs talent." Quinn turned to Rachel and her face immediately softened when their eyes met, something that was not lost on Marley. Standing up elegantly Quinn walked over to Rachel's side of the table, after pushing her chair in, and held her hand out for the silent brunette. "Shall we?" Rachel took her hand and smiled appreciatively at Quinn's chivalry.

"Oh, yes, thank you. I do need to make sure that everything's been made final. My manager, Joe, texted just a few moments ago, requesting my presence so that we can make things final … and he might or not have asked me to save him from someone he is referring to as intimidating as Satan. I believe he is referring to the head of your department of Talent Management because he mentioned something about rapid-fire Spanish being spoken and her blonde companion calming her down."

If Quinn had been anyone else she would have visibly shown her disapproval but Quinn merely nodded and tried to subtly hurry her pace to save the poor man dealing with Santana's wrath for whatever he might or might not have done. They both left without paying the woman standing stock still behind Rachel's recently vacated seat was and they certainly didn't notice her sad face and slightly shaky breath. Quinn had already told the restaurant to just charge her card, considering she had her card saved already from having prior orders, and Rachel didn't even notice because of her rush to save poor Joe from Santana Lopez's fearful wrath.

X

Upon arriving in the lobby area Santana's loud voice could be heard but her words were being spoken in Spanish so quickly it was nearly unintelligible sounding gibberish that seemed to only stop for brief pauses when she inhaled. Brittany's arms were wrapped around the fierce Latina woman to prevent her escape, and Santana would never harm Brittany whether it be an accident or not so she didn't try to escape from her strong arms. When Joe noticed Rachel he turned to her with an unsure look and he clearly looked intimidated by the woman still speaking loudly without yelling or screaming somehow, impressively enough.

"What is going on here?" Quinn asked with an authoritative voice when Santana and Brittany didn't seem to notice her presence in the room.

Brittany sighed as she attempted to explain only to be cut off by Santana finally speaking in English. "This puta here tried to lay his hands on Brittany earlier and he was asking for trouble with the way he man handled her!"

Shaking her head Brittany interjected, "actually, that's not true San. What really happened was I tripped over someone's leg because they were sitting with their legs stretched out and Joe happened to be sitting in the chair next to them and he caught me around my boobs with his hands so now San's all pissy about it and I'm trying to calm her down."

Rolling her eyes, Santana commented back scathingly, "Yeah, he was conveniently sitting there and just coincidentally caught you by your boobs Britt. I don't buy it." Brittany gave Santana a disapproving look in response.

Quinn sighed in frustration before taking charge of the situation, "look, Joe, here doesn't look like the type to just … 'cop a feel' on a girl quite honestly and not only that he was waiting on both Rachel and me because he's Rachel's manager and he was just sitting there waiting for us so we can finalize the contract that I'm sure you have typed and ready for the signatures that are required from the three of us here. We all have other things to do and I suggest you just take this as something you overreacted about because you have done so before Santana. Take a deep breath and just let it go so we can all finish our work and be done with the day. I'd like to go home at a reasonable hour and I'm sure you would as well." Rachel was amazed that with those few sentences Santana seemed to have calmed immensely and in the calmness she seemed to be able to rationalize again and she no longer looked like she was ready to tear Joe's head off. In short, Rachel believed that a small miracle had just occurred in the span of two minutes in the form of Quinn's logic winning over Santana's somewhat unpredictable mood swings.

Muttering under her breath for a moment Santana nodded her head in Joe's direction, "I may have overreacted slightly but you best keep your hands to yourself or else there won't be a next time or someone here to save your grubby hands from me." This was the closest Santana ever got to apologizing to someone and Joe certainly wasn't stupid and he wasn't going to argue with the frightening woman who had finally calmed down. "Now let's go this contract signing over with," Santana said loudly. She muttered the next part under her breath but Quinn heard it anyways, "the sooner the better." This caused Quinn to snort in amusement because Santana would always be Santana and never quite apologize for a mistake.

Rachel, having not heard Santana's muttered comment, looked at Quinn questionably. "Did I miss something, Quinn?"

Nodding Quinn leaned in close to Rachel's ears, causing that feeling from earlier to return, a feeling of completeness and oneness in both her soul and mind. "I just happen to have ears that are so attuned to Santana's muttering that I heard her say 'the sooner the better' under her breath. For years she's been, essentially, cursing me for having, and I quote, 'the ears of a damn hunting dog listening for their next meal,' and in a way it is true but usually I just catch things that she would rather not let me hear but in the end I overhear her anyways. She's not as sly as she thinks she is."

When Rachel looked up she noticed Santana's scowl, "I heard that Q and you'll get the earful you wanted later."

X

 _You got me feeling so upside down, inside out_

 _Don't know why I feel like screaming so loud_

 _All the ways that got me so twisted and crazy_

 _Are blurred in these memories becoming hazy_

 _If only I could just forget the day we first met_

 _It was the day that led me to feeling so much regret_

 _Maybe then I can move on from this nightmare_

 _Stop feeling like I'm so strung out and bare_

 _But I'm feeling so messed up now_

 _Need a way to get through somehow_

 _Never found the answers to what I'm looking for_

 _I'm just feeling so insecure, right to the core_

 _Because I feel like~_

 _You got me feeling so upside down, inside out_

 _Don't know why I feel like screaming so loud_

 _All the ways that got me so twisted and crazy_

 _Are blurred in these memories becoming hazy_

"I really like it so far," a voice said from behind Rachel, startling her badly enough that she jumped in the peaceful area she had found some time last week when she had been looking for something to inspire her lyrical wordsmith muse.

Turning around Rachel realized how close they were to each other in that moment. Honestly, all it would take was for Rachel to lean in a few inches and Quinn's lips would be pressed against hers. Rachel didn't know why she would think such a thing when she knew that she had found her destined love a week and a half ago, when she had been looking for Quinn to figure out her contract. "You startled me Quinn! I could have been in the middle of writing another line when you startled me!"

Chuckling softly, Quinn shook her head at Rachel's antics. She had been watching Rachel long enough to know that she wasn't about to write something else and had actually been deep in thought about her next verse. "I know that's not true because I was watching you." She didn't mention how long she had in fact been observing Rachel in her element for songwriting and Rachel noticed the lack of information. Rachel also blushed slightly in knowing that Quinn had been watching her but shook off those feelings, knowing that having even the slightest crush on the woman was a horrible thing to do considering she had indirectly met her chosen and just needed to find her destined soulmate wherever they were currently hiding. All she knew of her soulmate was that they were a moderately tall blonde woman and there were several blonde women working at Fabray Records working at the esteemed company. She could take Brittany out of the equation though, considering she was obviously already matched up. Her current options, from slowly learning of these people, were between Quinn Fabray herself, Kitty Wilde (Rachel highly doubted her as an option though), Cassandra July, Holly Holiday, and Fleur Delacour, a completely brilliant French woman who joined seemingly out of nowhere. She always looked like she was determined for some reason when she was around another employee there, a brilliant British woman by the name of Hermione Granger, and so Rachel doubted her as an option for being her soulmate.

Rachel realized she had been spacing out when she noticed Quinn's concerned eyes watching her carefully, eyes so beautiful she felt like she was drowning in them right now. "I'm sorry for zoning out I just have so much on my mind. You see … I feel … a bit … how do I say this …?" Rachel let out a frustrated grunt before she continued, "I feel this kind of pull whenever I'm around you … like for some reason my soul is reaching out to you and trying to tell me something about you whenever you're around and it's … kind of an all-consuming sensation. It completely takes all of my attention whenever it happens and I was lost in thought because of it just now, Quinn. I've been wondering if you felt it too, well, more like if you feel this way as well."

Quinn's look spoke of being a deer caught in headlights quite literally. "I … what if I said that I felt something similar to you, that I feel drawn to you as well? How would you feel about that, Rachel?" Quinn spoke hesitantly and cautiously, trying to pose this as a hypothetical situation.

The look on Rachel's face showed nothing of what she was feeling and it scared Quinn, someone who seemed so unflappable. "I just … I just want to know if you do or not. I want to know if you feel this way when you're around me, too. I want to know if your heart and soul, mind and body, feel like there's some kind of special connection, something that makes you think that there is something more than meets the eye when we see each other. Something akin to feeling a certain kind of affinity or magnetic pull towards me, do you feel anything like that at all?" Quinn looked at Rachel blankly, unsure of how to proceed when they were interrupted by a knock on the door. They both turned to the door opened just ajar with Kitty's head just peering in at them.

"There's a woman here asking to speak with you. She's downstairs in the lobby and the receptionist said her name is Marley Rose. I don't know what the fuss is but the receptionist downstairs said she looked troubled or something like that." Kitty sounded bored but she knew that this was kind of big considering she had never heard of someone requesting for Quinn by both first and last name before considering Quinn was so private that the employees never even called her by her first name.

A scowl marred Quinn's features briefly before she smoothed her expression back into blankness before she responded, "send her away. She already knows what my answer is and my answer will never change. Thank you, Kitty, for not sending her up right away. I'm glad that someone around her remembers the protocols." Quinn mumbled the last sentence and Rachel overheard her and gave a soft snort in response.

Kitty gave an eyebrow raise and Rachel briefly wondered if everyone working here was required to learn it because so far she knew that both Santana and Kitty could do it without overshadowing the prowess and seemingly perfected one Quinn had and Brittany had done it before as well but hers seemed much more questioning than fear inducing. "This … Marley Rose said that it was an 'urgent matter' and that you needed to speak to her immediately about it. She told the receptionist that it is an unavoidable situation and that you must see her this time where you have never given her the time before … so … ugh, just tell me to send her away because I feel annoyed just standing here relaying a message like this." Kitty rolled her eyes for emphasis.

"Well, send her away then, personally. I don't wish to see her and at this point I might just consider a restraining order because this is ridiculous. I do not wish to see her and if we happen to meet by chance so be it but she needs to understand that I do not have the patience to deal with her seemingly unable to understand English when it involves anything I tell her." Quinn's scowl was now bordering on glowering and Rachel felt a strange pull of attraction towards Quinn. Kitty looked surprised by her employer's show of emotion because everyone knew that the blonde was normally someone quite cold and emotionless.

"Yes, of course, right away Miss Fabray. I will give her the message personally then," Kitty gave Quinn a respectful nod and moved away to do so. Something interesting happened to both Kitty and Marley when Kitty went to deliver the message personally, as she promised Quinn. They both found that the world had become colorful when their eyes met and Marley felt herself faint from finally finding her fated love, something she had been convinced she'd never find until it finally happened and Kitty stared at her uncomprehendingly for several minutes before she took action.

Several minutes of silence fell when Rachel finally spoke up, "what is it that this … Marley … is always asking after you for? She seems to have done this to you before Quinn."

Taking a deep breath in and out Quinn hesitated before she spoke, choosing her words carefully. "Let's just say that she … well, she's convinced that she should take fate into her own hands and choose her own soulmate. And she's convinced … she wanted to make me her soulmate years ago when we attended college together briefly. She is two years younger than me so she was a freshman when I was a senior in college. I skipped two grades when I was younger so I graduated high school a bit early for my age. I don't know why she was convinced that I would be the one for her but I knew, from the beginning, that she is nothing to me. I never felt anything for her and I never experienced anything close to colors when I met her six years ago and I know that she is most definitely not my soulmate now more than ever because I told her that I've already found her. I told her when she interrupted our … lunch date the day you signed your contract. My soulmate is definitely not anybody by the name of Marley Rose."

The way Quinn was looking at her so intently caused Rachel to feel something that made her sense that Quinn was trying to tell her something without saying the words, a non-verbal message with the way her gaze was so intense and … imploring. It gave Rachel some chills and the feeling that felt as if her soul was trying to tell her something hit her again but this time it was practically screaming at her in full force and in that moment Rachel was almost 100% sure that Quinn had to have been the one she bumped in the hallway that day. Rachel wanted to know for sure but she wasn't sure if Quinn was the one or not because Quinn hadn't given any indication at all that she felt anything more for her during the last 10 days since Rachel had signed the contract that she felt anything more for her than she felt for any employee other than Brittany, Santana, and to a slight extent Sam Evans. She seemed so indifferent to everyone else and in a way Quinn seemed to give Rachel slightly more regard than her other employees but she definitely wasn't warm towards her … at least Rachel didn't think she did.

"When … when did you discover your soulmate exactly, Quinn?" Rachel asked somewhat hesitantly.

"Do I have to answer that?" Quinn replied after a slight pause.

"Is there any reason why you don't want to tell me if you have?"

"I don't really know you all that well, so why should I answer that?"

Rachel mentally cursed that Quinn was completely right about that, "Is there a reason you don't want to tell me though specifically? I mean, even if you tell me when you met her what would it matter to me anyways? As you said, you hardly know me so it shouldn't matter anyways." Rachel blinked at her innocently and seemingly obliviously.

This time someone else came barging through the door, "Hey, Q, we have a situation in the lobby, you've got to hurry down there!" Santana yelled into the room without any preamble.

Quinn mentally let out a relieved sigh as she gave Rachel a nod and turned her attention to Santana, "What is it?"

"Just hurry up and follow me, blondie! There's no time to talk, I'll explain as we walk. Let's go."

Curiosity was eating away at Rachel and so she moved to follow them when Quinn noticed, "Rachel, shouldn't you finish writing your song?"

"But I would like to see what is happening downstairs that's so urgent that you are now no longer able to answer my questions."

Santana intervened, "it doesn't matter if she follows along so leave her be. I need to explain anyways. So, that Kitty girl who went to get you earlier? Get this, she's Marley Rose's soulmate and she fainted, _fainted_ when she started seeing colors! Everyone's running around like a chicken with its head cut off because they've never seen a woman faint before or something. We need you down there anyways because there's more to the story that I don't know yet because they just told me to get you and I overheard some things on the phone when they were yelling things in the background."

Rachel was listening carefully to every spoken word and she felt relief in her soul at hearing that Marley was no longer going to be able to deny her true soulmate and chase after Quinn any longer. Everything faded into background noise as Rachel followed behind Quinn and Santana as Santana continued to speak. For some reason that Rachel couldn't fathom … Quinn seemed to glow when Rachel looked at her and saw her blonde hair frame her like a halo would an angel. It made Rachel even surer that Quinn had to be her soulmate without any question or doubt.

X

So, chapter 2 everyone! Thoughts, reviews, and whatever else it takes for me to know that this is worth continuing please!^^

姫宮光る


	3. Confrontations

Chapter 3

Confrontations

X

When Quinn made it downstairs, Santana and Rachel were already ahead of her since they took the elevator, Quinn could only shake her head at the accurate description Santana had given. Everyone was definitely running around in a frenzy, as if their heads had been cut off or something, and it was just absolute pandemonium with everyone acting like this was some strange phenomenon. There had been recorded cases of people fainting from what scientists call information overload causing shock. The sheer shock of the vast difference between white, gray, and black to all of the vibrant colors was sometimes too much for a person and so they would occasionally faint from the shock of it all coming into clear focus in that one crystalizing moment of realization. And so, this was the case for just a few moments before Marley seemed to come to and Kitty was helping her, not really having much choice because this was her soulmate after all. When Marley realized who it was she shook off her disorientation and stood abruptly. "You can't … you can't be my soulmate!" she yelled in complete denial and unaccepting of the fact.

Kitty sighed in response as she stood up from where she had been kneeling, "sucks to be you I suppose because here I am, soulmate. You can't exactly ask someone to deal you a different card since we've been destined since birth or whatever it is the world designed for us to find our soulmates. You're stuck with me whether you want me or not." Kitty seemed put off by how in denial Marley was being. There were no options and it was said that when someone was matched with their soulmate there was always a 100% guarantee that they were meant for each other and were perfect matches for each other in every way possible. Soulmates were never matched without fate choosing them to be that way and fate had never been wrong before despite Marley's assertions.

"I don't want you because I want someone else to be my soulmate. I don't even know your name anyways."

"It's Kitty Wilde, Marley Rose. There, we know each other's names now and you can't change the fact that we're meant to be together so you might as well start getting to know me now and maybe then you'll see it isn't so bad."

"But, I just … I don't see how everyone else in the world is so accepting of their soulmates when they don't even have a choice in who they end up with, who they fall in love with."

Kitty moved to stand right in front of Marley and despite Marley being half a foot taller Kitty's presence intimidated Marley a bit. "You listen up here," Kitty's green eyes were piercing straight through Marley's blue eyes, "I'm your soulmate and you're going to deal with it whether you like it or not, got it Rose?" Marley could do nothing but nod her head in agreement. Quinn shook her head and saw that pretty much everyone, all those nosy employees, had been watching the scene unfold with such intense scrutiny it was like they were watching a movie.

"Now that everything's been settled I believe anyone who wants to _keep_ their job should get back to work." That was all they needed to start moving along as if this had never happened, other than a few people gossiping while actually making it seem like they were working instead. Quinn then turned her attention to the two women standing close to each other still. "You always wanted to find your soulmate and now here she is Marley."

Marley turned her eyes over to Quinn, her eyes wide and uncertain, "I always thought I could change fate's mind and … well, I just … I wanted you to be my soulmate Quinn."

Upon hearing this Rachel bristled on the inside but Santana was the one who cut in, "well, too little too late. Quinn seems to have a thing for brunettes but the brunette she's going to fall in love with ain't you Rosey. You've obviously got a thing for blondes and here's the blonde you've been waiting for all of your life, so leave Quinn the hell alone now and chase Kitty's skirt instead, chica."

Quinn honestly wished she could just get some duct tape and use it on Santana some days but she knew that if she ever went through with her temptation Santana would definitely find a way to get back at her ten times worse what she had done, no matter how minor her actions against the Latina. She couldn't win with her some days.

X

It had been several days after what Rachel would dub, 'the incident at Fabray Records', something that many employees were still gossiping and talking about shamelessly. And Rachel was still no closer to finding out if Quinn was indeed her soulmate or not because it seemed like there was a lot of work to be done lately since both Mercedes and Sam were getting ready to release new albums within the next few weeks. Mercedes' album was to come out first by a month before Sam released his album and Puck was only about halfway through his song writing so he wasn't anywhere near finished with his newest album yet. There was also another ongoing event at Fabray Records that was keeping everyone busy and on their toes. According to the rumor mill Jesse St. James was attempting to prepare a lawsuit against Fabray Records for firing him two weeks ago 'seemingly out of nowhere' or so he claimed in the lawsuit. There were even rumors about how Rachel had been called upon for her testimony for a defense witness in the case since the reason Quinn cited was a complaint from a potential client about his rude and unprofessional behavior towards her as a main reason for dismissing him. Rachel's name was being thrown around because she was the newest artist to be signed on at Fabray Records and therefore was the only one who could possibly be the potential client who complained about Jesse. But, seeing as these were all rumors, there wasn't confirmation yet and the only reason anyone was gossiping about this was because they had found out just the day before about Jesse being dismissed by someone from the 'higher ups' in the office letting it slip. And by that everyone meant Brittany S. Pierce.

Quinn sighed as she overheard someone muttering about the current rumor mill circling around her dismissing Jesse St. Troublemaker from Fabray Records. She couldn't believe that people were gossiping about this even though it had already been a day since Brittany had let it slip by talking about it to Santana without using her inside voice and another employee had overheard part of the conversation and turned it into something entirely made up in the span of several minutes via text message. Quinn hoped that her glaring at every employee whispering would work but it only did enough to scare them into being quiet and looking down at the ground awkwardly as they waited for her to leave to continue. Quinn decided that she should tell the employees to mind their own business via an email message to all employees. She wanted to tell them that she didn't pay them to gossip at work and that if they had time to gossip then they definitely had time to work and get the job done on time.

She was broken out of her thoughts by a certain diva she had been attempting to avoid for the last three days. "I see you are finally available for a bit of a chat or perhaps even a lunch date. I'm sure that you are aware that our conversation from last time is not over, it was merely postponed because of the incident from three days ago and now that you are free, shall we have that talk?" Quinn knew there was no way of avoiding her short of lying and since Quinn didn't appreciate being lied to, she most certainly wasn't going to lie either.

Letting out a soft sigh and nodding her head, Quinn spoke reluctantly, "let's go out for some lunch then, Rachel."

As they entered a restaurant, this time it was Rachel's choice considering she was the one who practically demanded the meeting and sort of forced it upon Quinn. The hostess showing them to a table for two greeted Rachel in a familiar fashion with a bright smile, "here again Rachel? You can never get enough of _Cooper's_ can you?" Quinn felt her right eye twitch slightly at the familiar way the hostess greeted her. "I see you brought a … friend, with you?" she even waggled her eyebrows at Rachel in such a suggestive way that Quinn felt even more unsettled by their dynamic.

"Well, Tina, this person is actually my new boss, so, please don't make this even more unnecessarily awkward." Rachel gave her friend a pointed look which she seemed to completely ignore.

"It's quite odd for Rachel to bring a guest with her, a plus one, so to speak because I'm quite sure that Rachel has _never_ brought a … _friend_ along with her before."

Despite Quinn's frosty demeanor towards the Asian woman she couldn't help her slight curiosity, "why do you keep emphasizing the word friend so much so … unnaturally?"

Tina giggled softly before replying, "Because Rachel has never brought a plus one along with her before, so I think you must be a _special friend_ if you get what I'm saying," she said with a wink. Quinn was sure that her eyebrow must have been twitching but considering neither of the women seemed to look at her differently she must have had her expression under control, which was a miracle in and of itself.

"Not that this talk isn't interesting or anything, we need to get back to work soon Tina because an album doesn't write itself and a company doesn't run without a big boss." Rachel finally spoke up to end the almost awkward silence that had enveloped between them after what Tina had said hit too close to home, at least in Quinn's mind, she wasn't sure about what Rachel thought of this situation.

"Right, I'll give you the usual table in the back so the paps can't really see you even if they might possibly know you're here again. Right this way ladies," Tina said, back in hostess mode. Quinn was more than relieved to know that this woman did have a sense of professionalism and followed her to the table she deemed Rachel's table. It certainly seemed almost like a bit of a VIP area because this area was completely blocked off from the windows at the front of the restaurant and not only that but there was also a limited number of tables in this blocked off area. The tables looked like they had special silverware too and it made Quinn wonder if it was meant to be a VIP area. "Well, here you are and I'll give you a few minutes to look over the menu unless you want your usual Rachel?"

"No, I'll look over the menu so that Quinn and I can order at the same time, I just might want to order something else that I've been eyeing for a while but have yet to try, but thank you." Rachel smiled at Tina and Quinn felt something akin to uneasiness in her chest again. She wondered if it was because Rachel was the one who could possibly be her soulmate, her one true and destined love and she hadn't, so to speak, acknowledged it yet despite knowing that it couldn't possibly be anybody else. It had been nearly two weeks since they bumped into each other and the diva had turned her world colorful, quite literally, and taken the dullness of monochrome out of her life. Quinn noticed that she couldn't seem to see the world like she used to, couldn't seem to find the monotony enough anymore. Her mundane life had been turned into something vibrant and exciting, something she had never experienced before despite her somewhat, ironically, colorful childhood. It certainly wasn't as tasteless and bitter as it was since her parents' death.

A voice she hadn't heard until she felt a hand touching hers and making warmth bloom into every fiber of her being caused her to look up, "are you all right? I've been calling your name for quite some time now and you didn't respond and you seemed … melancholic." Rachel's warm, chocolate brown eyes seemed to trap her in their depths. She loved the shade of brown that Rachel's eyes were and in all honesty, out of all of the colors she had learned in the last two weeks she found that she was quite partial to yellow, green, and blue and if the right shade, purple as well. She wasn't quite a fan of brown after discovering that mud was the same color people called brown but when she first saw Rachel's eyes after learning colors … she found that she really liked her brown eyes more than any other color and it made her panic inside.

Blinking her thoughts from her head, Quinn finally responded. "I'm … I'm fine. Let's order first and then we can … have our talk, Rachel." Rachel nodded in agreement and within a few minutes their orders were placed and Quinn didn't miss the fact that Tina winked at Rachel. "Go ahead and say what you've probably wanted to say for probably the last few days now, Rachel. I'll … answer or respond as best I can whenever you're ready." Quinn, however calmly she spoke and seemed, was anything but calm and collected. She was in fact mentally on edge and freaking out over what Rachel could possibly ask or say.

Sighing softly Rachel started hesitantly, "I'm just going to be blunt and say it … am I your soulmate? Is that why you started to suddenly avoid me after I started asking questions? That's really mostly what I want to know because after thinking about it the past few days … I'm almost 100% sure that you're the one I bumped into in that hallway nearly two weeks ago when I was looking for the conference room. Just tell me … let me know if this is true, if you're my soulmate Quinn."

Quinn nodded once after a pause and spoke softly. "I just want you to know that the reason I didn't say anything even though I … I suspected you were my soulmate when we first met isn't because of you or anything to do with the fact that I'm your boss. I … I was hoping that you wouldn't have to end up with someone … like me." The last part was so soft Rachel had to strain to hear her words.

Rachel's eyebrows furrowed as she looked on in confusion at Quinn's words. "What do you mean by someone like you? Is there … are you sick or something like that?"

She shook her head, "no, it's nothing like that at all, Rachel. What I mean is … I'm not exactly … an easy person to talk to or get close to if you haven't already noticed with the work atmosphere. Everyone seems to be intimidated by me because I seem so … emotionless and for the most part I am. I am very indifferent to almost everyone other than my few friends and … now you. Somehow they have noticed that I, in a way, treat you differently from everyone else under my employ because I have shown emotions they have never really seen me show other than when I am around Brittany and Santana. You're different and they already know it." The look in Quinn's eyes was undecipherable but Rachel could see that they were indeed full of some kind of emotion, something that Rachel conceded that most other employees had never really witnessed before. "I don't, rather, I didn't want you to have to be trapped loving someone like me without knowing that I'm kind of … a broken person. As I told you before, my life after my parents' death … it became even more of a monochrome world without them, a different kind of colorless world. I was shattered, broken by their sudden deaths. I didn't think you'd want someone like me and so I hoped that you wouldn't realize that your destined soulmate was me … but you did so now here we are, sitting in a restaurant with me confessing my reasons for avoiding this talk."

Closing her eyes didn't help keep her tears at bay but at least Rachel wouldn't be able to see the emotion in them. Rachel took her hand and said, "I understand where you're coming from now but … I am already in love with you, at least … my soul is but I already know that your reasoning is pure and noble and I think I just swooned a bit if I'm being completely honest upon hearing your chivalrous reasons. I really think that if you give us a shot, give our souls matching a chance … we can be so happy together, that we'll work well with each other. It's like they say, the world works in mysterious ways but there has never been a soulmate match that has ever been unhappy before." The imploring look in Rachel's eyes was part of the reason Quinn found herself caving. This woman … she was already under her skin in a way that she had never experienced with anyone else before. Honestly her employees kept giving her attempted furtive glances whenever the diva was around but it never quite worked out considering she was _right there_ and she had eyes that they seemed to forget about sometimes.

"I've found that I can't really say no to you no matter how hesitant I feel. I … I do think we can be a good fit too, obviously our souls are in agreement about that, all things considered with us being soulmates. I do have to say one thing though, I didn't think I liked the color brown until I noticed that your eyes are the warmest shade of chocolate brown I have ever seen." Rachel's heart thudded in her chest upon hearing such romantic words and she wondered if the blonde was the effortlessly romantic type. She had to be to say things like that without batting an eye or seeming nervous. Rachel knew she could never be that smooth if she wanted to in response.

"We should really get to know each other properly then. Will you accept it if I asked you to go out on a date with me?" Rachel asked, a soft smile on her face, already feeling affectionate towards the blonde woman who was finally opening up a bit.

"Well, how can I refuse such a beautiful woman's request? I feel as if there's no part of me capable of denying you anything, Rachel Berry." The way Quinn said it made Rachel feel herself swooning at the effortlessly romantic woman again. It seemed like there was no end to how romantic Quinn's words were. Rachel could tell that this was only the beginning for them.

X

By the end of the week they were going on their first date and Rachel had insisted on planning it because she was the one who asked Quinn out on a date and it was during this date that Rachel discovered Quinn's claustrophobia. Rachel was driving through the streets of LA carefully in order to reach her destination and she was bouncing in excitement every time they encountered a stop sign or traffic light. Quinn couldn't help but find Rachel's giddy mood slightly infectious. A genuine smile that Quinn was becoming more and more familiar with was present on her face.

"Are you always this happy and … bouncy?" Quinn asked with an amused voice.

"Not really, no. On occasion I have been known for my even brighter moods. I am, generally, an effervescent person naturally but, depending on the circumstances, I am sometimes giddier than my usual level of energy." Rachel replied.

"Do you always use such superfluous language, sunshine?"

Rachel was torn between feeling slightly indignant about Quinn calling her excellent use of words extraneous and swooning at the nickname that fit her personality perfectly. "Just because you called me sunshine I might forgive you for the slightly blasphemous words you just spoke … grumpypants."

Quinn's left eye twitched and Rachel saw it because she glanced over at the blonde since they were at a red light. Seeing her eye twitch caused a giggle to burst from Rachel and Quinn's serious face melted into a happy smile once again. "At least mine was much more on the clever and complimentary side. I suppose not all are equal in that respect though."

This caused a scoff to fall from Rachel's lips, "well then, I suppose my nice dinner plans with you are going to be a bit sour now that you've gone there. Just wait until you see what I have planned."

A smirk made itself known on Quinn's lips, "oh, really now? I don't think you are capable of revenge even if you wanted or had good reason to exact it."

"You hardly know me at all Miss Big Company Owner, so how would you know?" Rachel asked, sounding somewhat haughty.

Looking over at Rachel carefully, Quinn knew that she liked Rachel and her core personality a lot. Quinn looked away when she started speaking. She had seen much more than Rachel realized, "because, I know that you're a hard worker and serious to a fault. You take things literally and show who you are truly without hesitation, as in you're never fake or pretending to be somebody you're not. You can be extremely stubborn when in the heat of the moment about certain things but once you've calmed down you're much more reasonable and level-headed about things. You're also an extremely verbose person, proud of your vernacular and you have rants, tirades at times when someone doesn't understand what it is you're so passionate about. You're an extremely compassionate and passionate person, part of the reason why you're vegan." When Quinn was met with silence she turned to look over at the stunned face of the woman she knew was her soulmate. "Is there anything I missed?" Quinn asked with the slightest hint of hesitation in her voice.

They were already in front of the restaurant halfway through Quinn's observant words and Rachel was just completely shell shocked by how well Quinn already apparently knew her. Everything she said was entirely accurate and a bit scary. "Was all of that in the biography you said you read two weeks ago? The one Santana wrote for you to read about me?"

Shaking her head, Quinn gave a soft laugh. "In all honesty, when Santana writes a biography she only writes facts and is quite professional about them. She doesn't add her … colorful input about it in the biography. She adds those types of comments in person. I just … let's just say I noticed these things whenever I happened to see you from afar before you finally cornered me for a confrontation. I especially noticed these things because I was curious about the woman fate bound me to and when I had gone to see you working on that song … it was out of curiosity and being unable to stay away from you. It's like you said, I do feel an inexplicable draw, an affinity and kind of need to be near you, to learn more about you and a want to do those things as well. I suppose, in a way, I just need you to feel complete, to make my soul feel complete and whole."

It was in this moment that Rachel knew for certain that Quinn most certainly had to be an unwitting romantic because she had never felt herself swoon so much in the space of so little time. Quinn was making Rachel's heart thump into overdrive from the romantic words.

"Has anyone ever told you that you have the ability to leave people starry eyed and speechless before? Because, as you stated, I am quite the loquacious person but I had no idea what to say in response to all of that." Quinn chuckled softly upon hearing that.

"No, I have not. If we're both being honest I hardly give anyone my time and there are very few people I am willing to spend my time with who aren't Brittany and Santana and occasionally a few other people. You … you're actually the first person I've even spoken this much to in one sitting."

"If you're not careful, you're going to leave me so star struck and speechless that I'll actually start becoming a brainless zombie, drooling all over my own arm from lack of speech capabilities, Quinn." This caused an indelicate snort to leave Quinn which caused Rachel to laugh at the sound, something she never imagined the regal looking blonde to ever be capable of producing. It was adorable and Rachel felt a tugging warmth in her chest and something that felt deeper, like her soul was happy and warm.

"Well, would that be so bad? I suppose it would be a bad thing since I kind of like your speaking voice and I'm sort of a big fan of your singing voice Miss Gold Star." The way Quinn said it so affectionately and the small smile on her face as she said it made Rachel's heart swell and her soul sing in approval.

"I guess it would be a tragedy if I were to ever become permanently mute because I wouldn't give up making you smile for anything, Miss Cold Face, Big Heart." And that truly did sum up Quinn's personality. Quinn acted cold towards everyone but those she was close to and Rachel could tell that she was going to be Quinn's every exception in that regard, especially from her recalling a conversation with a certain firecracker Latina.

X

Quinn's face was the quintessential look of sulking, something Rachel didn't think she was capable of until the moment it happened when she managed to sneak over to the waitress and ask for the bill before Quinn realized that she hadn't actually needed to use the facilities. And when Rachel came back from her not using the facilities Quinn had commented on how the waitress had yet to give them their bill, wondering what was taking her so long. Rachel could only smirk and when Quinn finally noticed Rachel's smiling face she realized that the sly diva had taken care of the bill already and Rachel's victorious words of, "my revenge is complete," caused the sulking, almost pouty, look on the blonde's features. Quinn didn't like being proven wrong or having someone one up her in any way whatsoever. And thus the silent car ride back to Quinn's house and Rachel's frown as she drove them through the somewhat clear streets of LA.

By the time they arrived at Quinn's swanky condominium Rachel's face looked, to the unobservant person, blank. Blank meant something was wrong to anyone who knew Rachel because she was never a blank face unless something was wrong and she was hiding her emotions. This was something Rachel normally didn't do because Rachel was the kind of person who wore her heart on her sleeve and prided herself on never pretending to be anyone else and was always true to herself, diva or not. As soon as Rachel stopped in front of Quinn's house and put her car in park she spoke up, "I apologize for ruining the evening Quinn. I hope you have a nice night."

As soon as those words left Rachel's lips Quinn realized that Rachel was upset and she sounded and looked so dejected. "I'm sorry Rachel. I didn't mean to be a sourpuss and upset you like this over you paying the bill. It was all me just being … difficult. What can I do to make this a better end to our wonderful date?"

Rachel finally looked at Quinn and saw that her face was an adorable pouty mess this time rather than a sulking one and it made Rachel's heart melt and swell with adoration toward this woman she knew she was already falling for, that her soul had fallen in love with at birth. "Well, you can start by allowing me to escort you to your condo door and then I'll tell you the next part of earning your way toward redemption." Quinn almost rolled her eyes because it was a slightly childish response but she couldn't help but find it endearing. Almost everything about Rachel seemed to be something she classified as endearing. When they finally made it to the entrance of Quinn's condominium Rachel faced Quinn and the intense look in her brown eyes bore into Quinn's very soul with a grip that she would not soon forget. It was as if Rachel's soul was reaching out to her and making her feel everything Rachel was trying to show her in this moment of intense locked eyes. When people used the idiom about the eyes being the window into the soul, perhaps they meant it literally. Almost as if a voice, Rachel's voice, was calling out to her with a command without speaking Quinn leaned forward and gave Rachel a soft, warm kiss on the lips and effectively interpreted the feeling that was somewhat like sound. It was a magical first kiss for the both of them. There was an immediate spark that was soul deep in both of them as they continued to press lips and a warmth spread throughout their bodies and souls as they continued to kiss softly.

Pulling away after a moment and feeling slightly breathless Quinn spoke softly, "did you feel that? It was like … like you told me what you wanted without ever uttering a word when our eyes connected. It was the sound of your voice but you never spoke any words to tell me you wanted me to kiss you but somehow I just seemed to know what you were asking for."

"I felt it too, and it was a spell bounding first kiss. It was like … our souls became one in that moment when our lips met for the first time." Quinn nodded in agreement, "do you want to see what happens if we kiss a second time?" Without another word their lips met again and it seemed to send jolts and sparks as well as warmth through their bodies and souls and it was absolutely wonderful and they knew that there was no way that fate was wrong about matching them. Everything about them felt right and it was especially true in this moment between two destined lovers kissing.

X

The next week passed by like a blur. Quinn introduced Rachel to Hermione Granger, a British woman known for her exceptional brilliance, who would be in charge of keeping track of record sales and all revenue going to Rachel's earnings. Fleur, another highly intelligent foreigner but on the French side of Europe, had proven herself as the Head of European Relations, meaning that she was in charge of helping to get any artist producing music under Fabray Records over to Europe through marketing strategies. Holly Holiday was the director of many a music videos at Fabray Records and, though relatively new to the company, Cassandra July helped Brittany by choreographing one half of the dance routines for current artists at Fabray Records. Brittany had asked for a second choreographer because Fabray Records now had too many clientele for Brittany to handle all at once. Right at this moment Rachel was speaking with the brunette, a gorgeous woman who seemed unaware of her beauty and charm, about how much money she would make per CD sold at the base rate that most music was sold for these days, taking technology into consideration and Apple iTunes sales.

"So, for each individual song sold on iTunes at $1.29 you will be making $.39 which doesn't seem like much but imagine just how much that will add up to when you've sold 10,000 songs at that price alone." Hermione was giving Rachel a bit of information overload because in just a few minutes Hermione hadn't seemed to take a single breath as she continued to speak in depth about what everything meant in terms of how much Rachel would be making. Rachel was grateful for the interruption by the jaw dropping beauty, Fleur Delacour, coming over to interrupt Hermione mid-sentence.

"Mon coeur, if I may interrupt you for a moment?" The way the blonde French woman said it seemed like more of a formality than asking for permission and the serious, no nonsense British woman allowed it without protest amazingly.

"I suppose it's all right, Fleur." A look passed between them and Rachel was sure now that they must be soulmates and she suspected that perhaps the French woman discovered this fact first because it seemed as if she had a more affectionate gaze for the British woman than the British woman did for the French woman. Rachel was sure that the British woman was aware of them being paired together because despite the fact that she didn't seem all that thrilled with being Fleur's soulmate, she was begrudgingly accepting their pairing. Rachel wondered about that briefly before she turned her attention to Fleur.

"I was told to discuss with you, briefly, what European countries Mademoiselle Fabray would like to release your upcoming albums in with the help of 'Ermione. Well, that is, if 'Ermione does not mind helping me." Fleur's French accent, now that Rachel was paying attention more, was quite subtle other than her being incapable of pronouncing the h in Hermione's name properly. It was a bit strange considering when she said 'helping' it didn't show up at all.

Hermione sighed before giving a nod of consent, "I suppose if I must, I'll help you with that. Perhaps we should move somewhere more private for this discussion considering the fact that anyone can listen in on and attempt to sell the information we will be discussing for their own benefit. A conference room should do."

When they arrived to a conference room on the fourth floor Hermione, who had been leading the group, opened the door and shut it almost immediately before turning around, her face flushed. The first to speak was Fleur, "what is going on? Have you caught a fever, 'Ermione? You are so flushed, mon coeur."

Mouth opening and closing several times before finally giving up, Hermione shook her head in response. Rachel's curiosity got the better of her and she opened the door before having the same reaction as Hermione but her face didn't show the flush nearly as much due to her tan skin. Eyes wide and cheeks red, Rachel turned to Fleur and spoke for the reserved British woman, "it appears that there is a couple … snogging, as I'm pretty sure that's what the British term is, in this room so we should, *ahem* go to a different room for this discussion."

Fleur was still curious as to who it was that had the two women before her blushing so badly and completely flustered. "But … 'oo is it? Will you tell me who is causing you both to act like school children catching someone doing something embarrassing?" When neither answered Fleur opened the door for herself and realized why they were both blushing so fiercely, the snogging had turned into foreplay and it appeared as if the amorous couple were getting ready for something of the sexual nature to occur. And upon seeing the tiny blonde and much taller brunette Fleur realized it must be the two women from the incident nearly two weeks ago that led to so much gossip. She remembered that one of their names had to do with wild cats and the other was some kind of flowery name, like hers. "I believe we should move on before we hear them moaning and groaning, if you will follow me to a different room.

Back in the room, after hearing the door open and close for a third time, Kitty finally pulled away from her position on top of Marley to ask, "Should I lock the door before we continue? We just gave about three people a free show, Marley."

"No, you're not going to do anything until I get a damn orgasm Kitty." Kitty shrugged and finished what they started, causing Marley to see stars.

X

So, here's the next chapter everyone! I hope this is a good chapter for everyone because our favorite couple went on a date!^^

姫宮光る


	4. One Better Day

Chapter 4

One Better Day

X

Rachel was currently cursing out a certain blonde woman she found that she greatly disliked after meeting her properly for the first time just a week ago. There was no reason for that insufferable woman to treat her the way she had been and it was causing Rachel to be in a foul mood every time she so much as saw or heard mention of the despicable woman's name. Kurt had finally come in to see her hard at work today only to watch her being criticized by the unnecessarily harsh woman. It was an outrage of epic proportions but Rachel refused to complain to Quinn just in case she fired the woman simply for being mean to her. Cassandra July was insufferable but Rachel would never purposely attempt to sabotage the woman by getting her fired simply because they clashed with each other.

Suddenly the sensation of arms wrapping around her waist brought Rachel out of her musings and she knew it could only be one person. "You startled me, Quinn!" Rachel only heard chuckling in response to what she said. It amazed Rachel how affectionate Quinn was now that she was much more comfortable with the idea of having found her soulmate and actually seeing that she wasn't a horrid match for the woman her soul was bound to eternally. Everyone at the company present to witness watched on with gaping expressions, not knowing that their boss was capable of looking so … happy or anything but indifferent.

"That was kind of the point Rachel Berry."

"Well, Miss Big Boss of a succeeding company, are you sure you're okay with your employees knowing that you're capable of smiling? It might make you lose the intimidating factor that then causes them to think you've gone soft and therefore that they can slack off."

"Never, I can be as big of a cuddle bear as I want with you because you're my soulmate. If they decide that they'd like to slack off … well Miss Big Boss will fire them big time."

"My, your words take my breath away sometimes, you secret romantic you."

"I'm actually … not really romantic. The things I say kind of come naturally when it comes to you and your beautiful soul, not to quote Jesse McCartney or anything."

This caused a loud, belly laugh to issue forth from Rachel's lips and Quinn smiled even wider. Smiled! The employees who were no longer paying attention to what they were supposed to be doing had slack jawed expressions as they watched their normally extremely terrifying boss smile and … laugh? Was the apocalypse approaching?

Quinn moved her head so that she could nuzzle into the crook of Rachel's neck and it caused Rachel to giggle like a school girl because it tickled. "Quinn, they're staring."

"Let them stare."

"I love you."

This caused Quinn to move her head out from Rachel's neck and, for a moment, fear gripped Rachel before she became confused as Quinn turned Rachel around to face her. "I love you, too," was said before Quinn leaned in and gave Rachel the kiss of her life, not that this was their first kiss but it was certainly the most passionate and heated one she'd ever received, almost all tongue and pleasurable. For someone who had never kissed before Quinn was certainly a natural and quite a pleasing person to kiss. Rachel was glad that she was stuck with someone who could certainly kiss her into the ground for all she'd care.

"Ew, gag me, I'm going to barf if you two don't quit being so gross and vomit inducing with your disgusting display of hormonal tongue shoving." A voice that belonged to none other than Santana about to be murdered by Quinn's glare Lopez. Well, if she were anyone else she might have been intimidated by Quinn's burning glare. Quinn didn't stop kissing Rachel at all and in fact kissed her even harder and did a certain trick with her tongue that caused an involuntary moan to grace Santana's ears. "Ugh, Quinn, no, just no." When Quinn finally pulled away there was a spit trail connecting them much to Santana's further repulsion at the amorous couple breathing heavily.

Smirking Quinn finally spoke, "I'm sure the many times I caught you doing something similar to Brittany wasn't something you thought I disliked which is why this is something that shouldn't bother you at all. I suppose you can call this my revenge against you Santana considering you didn't have to watch if you didn't want to, so … maybe you did want to watch."

Quinn felt a light slap and heard Rachel's indignant voice, "just because you can kiss me stupid doesn't mean you should brag about it!" Rachel leaned in closer and blocked her mouth just in case Santana could read lips so she could whisper into Quinn's ears, "and just so you know … I was terrified for a moment that you weren't going to say it back. I'm glad you love me too." The soft and adoring smile Quinn gave Rachel in return caused an impossibly endearing smile to engulf Rachel's face.

Reaching out to Rachel's face, Quinn rubbed the dimple on Rachel's cheek, "I love your dimples when you smile and I … how can I not love you? I couldn't possibly not fall in love with you even if I tried. It's impossible."

"Ugh, I'm dying from you two being mushy, literally killing me right now. I'm leaving to do something much better, like Brittany." Despite hearing what Santana said and letting both of their faces scrunch at how crass Santana was they ignored her otherwise.

X

"Shwimmer, how can you call that dancing? It's pathetic that you think you're some kind of hotshot just because you were on Broadway. Broadway can have mediocre dancers who know choreography they are taught over really knowing how to move their bodies. I think you're in over your head if you think you can learn this dance routine for your summer song." Cassandra July's voice was preying on every insecurity Rachel had and she hated it because she had made it years ago already and now here was this woman trying to make her feel so small and insecure, like she hadn't already made something of herself and was still on the way there.

"I don't care what you say about me. I'm someone who's already made something of myself and I will not let you put me down with your twisted words and demeaning attitude."

"Oh, ho, so she speaks. I thought all of this time that someone had been lying about you having pipes stronger than bag pipes. I don't even know if you're any good at singing and maybe that's just a lie as well. Maybe they think dying, off tune cats are capable of song these days, Shwimmer."

That finally had one too many nerves and points of pride for Rachel, "Cassandra! That is enough! Belittle me all you want if you think that you're making yourself feel better but do not belittle my accomplishments or achievements. I am _the youngest person_ to ever be this close to achieve an EGOT. I've gotten an Emmy, an Oscar, and a Tony under my belt and I've only just turned 24. Yes, I might be a bit rusty in terms of my dancing techniques since I haven't been on Broadway in nearly a year if not longer but I am still more than capable. My summer song is just a few months away from happening which is why I'm preparing _now_ so that I can be sure to be nothing short of _amazing_ when I perform and dance on stage while I sing this song I'm working on writing and recording. I will not tolerate your insults if they are as baseless and meaningless in demeaning my talent as a singer and dancer, especially when it comes to my vocal prowess, Cassandra."

For a moment Cassandra seemed to actually consider her but they were both interrupted by someone else approaching. "Cassie, you know that wasn't very nice and her talent is something that is unquestionable. I know you're a tough cookie but you can't be that mean and not expect her to defend herself." Holly Holiday was standing a few feet away from them with a chastising look and Cassandra actually looked slightly guilty in response. Rachel believed she had just witnessed a miracle and then something that further cemented the idea was her watching Holly lean forward and give Cassandra a peck on the lips before backing up and smiling at Rachel. "I hope she isn't too unbearable but if she ever goes out of line like that again just tell me and I'll make sure she behaves herself."

Rachel was still slightly in awe over the fact that Cassandra actually knew how to be nice and the fact that she was someone's soulmate was surprising to Rachel. She had always thought that there was no way someone could be cranky and mean if they had a soulmate. People who were paired up generally were happy people and there had never been in crime in the world as a result from happy pairings. There had never even been war, as strange as that concept was.

"Thank you for the offer Holly but I think I'm just going to call it quits for today. It's quite late into the afternoon and I have yet to eat anything and so I'm rather famished." Rachel spared a single glance at Cassandra before looking at Holly again, "a good day to you both."

As soon as Rachel was out of earshot Holly rounded on her soulmate, "Cassandra, you shouldn't be so mean to her. You know I don't like it when you do that to someone else."

Sighing Cassandra nodded her head, "I know that but … I don't like how cocky she is at such a young age. I … I'll try harder not to be as mean next time." Holly leaned in and gave her a lingering kiss on the lips this time, causing Cassandra to smile. "I love you."

X

Rachel didn't know what to do with herself and so she was just wandering around when she heard a loud thud in a room a few feet away from her and Rachel started checking in various rooms until she found the source. She finally opened a room to see Fleur on the floor with a worried Hermione hovering over her and checking her pulse and various other things she knew to keep an eye on. "What's going on? Should I call for some help?"

The British woman finally looked up, "yes, call … dial the medical emergency number, which is 100 and tell them that Fleur's collapsed, hurry please!" Hermione looked desperate and frantic in a way Rachel had never seen the normally calm and collected woman who rarely let anything ruffle her feathers. It was a bit nerve wracking to witness.

Doing as she was told Rachel immediately went over to the nearest phone on the wall to dial the number as she was instructed and a voice on the other line spoke calmly into the phone, "what's the medical emergency and which conference room is it?"

"Oh, um, conference room E on the fourth floor and the emergency is that an associate from Fabray Records has collapsed on the floor and she needs immediate medical assistance!" The person on the other line could be heard speaking to someone else for what seemed like an extremely prolonged moment despite it merely being seconds ticking by. They finally told Rachel that someone was coming up right away and that she should stay on the line just in case something else came up. It was all a blur of rushed activity by the time the medics came up to look at Fleur's vitals before putting her on a stretcher to move her to the medical building just next door. Without quite knowing how Rachel ended up sitting with Hermione in front of the waiting area while one of the medical staff members ran diagnostic tests on her. Rachel was momentarily distracted by the fact that Quinn had such an extensive building, including such an updated and practical medical building for her employees. It was truly wonderful and it made Rachel's soul warm with thoughts of her soulmate. Rachel felt what the books about soulmate bonds referred to as bond links directly in the core of her heart and soul, a return squeeze of warmth. It was a magnificent experience and Rachel couldn't wait until they could transfer thoughts to each other and just know what the other was thinking without vocally voicing things. She knew they would be there soon.

Glancing over at the silent but worried British woman caused Rachel to feel such empathy for her. Rachel reached out an arm and gently placed it on the woman's shoulder, causing the woman to look up at her. "I'm sure she'll be all right. Can you feel anything from your bond?"

Hermione shook her head before speaking up, "I think … I think that this must be partially my fault that she's collapsed. I … I'm not exactly … I haven't exactly been particularly accepting of the fact that she's my mate, my soulmate I mean, and it … I'm sure it's what's causing us problems, or rather her specifically. They say that when both parties accept that they're destined there aren't any complications but when just one half of a pairing is unaccepting of their bond the half that they are rejecting is the one hurt. In this case Fleur accepts me as her soulmate completely but I haven't yet accepted her which is most likely why she collapsed today. We … I … we were arguing and I told her that I'd never accept our bond in the heat of the moment and she collapsed within moments of me saying that." Rachel wasn't sure how to help her distraught companion and only gave her a reassuring squeeze before dropping her arm and sitting down on the bench next to her.

"I think I can understand how you feel a bit. It wasn't necessarily the same situation but my soulmate had been avoiding me and I felt a kind of depression with it, though it wasn't as severe as what is occurring to Fleur. I think that despite accepting me as her soulmate Quinn was still rejecting me slightly which is why my physical health held up but my mental health didn't quite hold up completely, though it was a minor kind of depression." Rachel looked at the woman who seemed look a little bit less worried with the information Rachel had given her. It wasn't something that was widely known but anyone who either chose to read the book on soulmate bonds or experienced it themselves would know about these things. Most people chose to live their lives normally and meet their soulmates that way, it was the preferred method because of surprise.

The look on Hermione's face didn't change, she looked guilty and distressed. "I can't help thinking that it has to be my fault because I'm the one … I'm the only one who is rejecting our union as soulmates. Fleur completely accepts me for who I am, faults and all, without question but I'm the one questioning our bond and why the Fates decided to pair us up. The only explanation and reason for Fleur's collapse and me rejecting her even if I don't realize that is what I've been doing. Do you realize how long Fleur has been chasing me now?" Rachel shook her head in lieu of a verbal response. "She's been patient for half a year now. She's been giving me space to accept everything about her for so long and I haven't given her the time of day, haven't tried to even truly think about the ramifications of allowing her to wait that long and what's worse is that I didn't notice that her health had been steadily growing worse. Maybe because she's just that good at hiding it or maybe I just didn't want to see it, didn't want to be the reason for it. Whatever the case … I know that I'm at fault."

Silence reigned over them as they sat together, Rachel unsure of what to say to make the woman next to her feel better and Hermione too absorbed in her thoughts to notice Rachel struggling. It had been several minutes of silence when someone approached them, "excuse me?" they turned to the female voice addressing them. The woman was rather pale, had freckles on her face, and red hair that was a bit more on the orange spectrum, something Rachel had yet to witness in the color spectrum when describing a person's hair color. "I'm the nurse who has been assigned to give you a quick summary about Fleur's condition, which one of you is her soulmate? I can't tell because they said that her soulmate is a brunette and evidently you are both brunettes."

After they were both momentarily stunned Hermione spoke up, "I am, I'm Fleur's soulmate."

"My name is Emma and I'll be watching over her during her overnight stay at the hospital. It isn't necessarily a serious condition but we'd like to keep her for observation just in case. Will you be staying with her during her overnight stay?"

Nodding her head, Hermione spoke up softly, "yes, of course I will. Can you tell me what it is that might possibly be the problem, what caused her to collapse?" Hermione sounded so hopeful yet so petrified by what answer the nurse might give her.

"Well, since you're her soulmate I suppose I'll tell you. It's a rather specific health condition that occurs rarely but not unheard of. It's almost like she's … got similar symptoms to cardiomyopathy and has had them for a few months it seems and it also appears to be directly linked to … what we have come to refer as soulmate bond _strain_." Seeing the look on Hermione's face the woman was quick to add, "It is nothing for you to blame yourself for because it can happen under many different circumstances and it _isn't_ your fault before you jump to that conclusion."

"But how can it not be? I'm the one rejecting our union as soulmates!" She was bordering on hysterical now and it showed that she truly did care and love her soulmate despite her reservations and rejection of their destiny.

Taking a calming breath the nurse took a quick look around the relatively empty hallway they were in before leaning in closer, "I'm not really supposed to tell you this … really but, seeing how distraught you are I will. I can't say it isn't your fault before telling you this. Whenever soulmates are having issues … there is a link in the bond that transfers those feelings as a sort of link between soulmates whether it's a good or bad thing. It just happens that way in our world. The thing that is causing it could be many things but in this case I think that it is very _mildly_ to do with the fact that you feel you are rebuffing your soulmate and in truth … the doctor thinks that there's more to it than just your part of being in denial. He says that he's not quite sure what it is about her biology but there is something different about her that seems to be the cause, something that is completely stumping the good doctor which is why she's being kept for observations despite not really having any medical malady to be treated. He's being cautious because there is something strange about your soulmate's condition that is truly puzzling him." Emma took another quick glance around before she turned her attention back to the pair on the bench, "now you never heard that from me all right? I will be in big trouble if they find out I told you about that because they want to keep it a secret and I'm just going by HIPPA law since she made sure to write that on the form she filled out when she came to earlier. With that being said … she asked for you …?"

Realizing they never introduced themselves to the kind nurse Hermione and Rachel stood up immediately. "My name is Hermione Granger and this is my … friend and co-worker Rachel." Hermione wasn't sure if Rachel would want this woman to recognize her name or not so she left it up to Rachel to decide that for herself.

Emma stuck her hand out for both women to shake, "well, hello Hermione, nice meeting you, and you as well Rachel. My name is Emma as I told you earlier. Well, Fleur asked for you if you'd like to come in to see her now and check on her. She woke up shortly after arriving in this building and the only word she kept saying was your name. After she settled down and was rational and fully aware of her surroundings she asked if it was possible for you to come in as soon as possible. I can see that you both care for each other deeply so … whatever might be holding you back … you might want to reconsider why you feel the need to hold back from your soulmate." With that the nurse left to do nursey things in her little cubicle area.

The words echoed in Hermione's mind for several moments before she stood up with a determined look on her face. Rachel, unsure of what to do, stood as well and followed the brunette to the nurse's station, "which room is she in Emma?"

"Room 10 bed A." Emma had a bit of a knowing look on her face and the corner of her lips were curled up in a suppressed smile and Rachel could feel a slight amusement creep onto her features as well. Rachel was curious about what Hermione was about to do so she followed the determined woman to her soulmate's room and waited by the door as Hermione entered the room.

"Mon coeur, you came!" Fleur's entire face lit up upon seeing Hermione quickly approaching her, "I'm so glad that you—" the rest of what Fleur was going to say was cut off by Hermione's lips meeting hers in a fierce, heated kiss that caused Rachel to blush. Hermione certainly gave no warning and Rachel was pretty sure she heard a moan coming from the blonde having the soul kissed into her. Rachel averted her eyes and took a few steps away from the doorway to give the soulmates some privacy. She heard some soft words being spoken and decided that she didn't need to intrude on them anymore than she already had. On her way out she gave Emma a thumbs up and a wink and the woman gave her a wink and thumps up back in response before waving a quick goodbye to her. If nursing didn't work out for that woman she might have her calling as soulmate councilor instead because she certainly knew what to say. Quick and efficient as well.

X

Quinn wasn't sure how things ended up where they were but she wasn't complaining in the least, she currently had Rachel pinned to her own plush couch and they were both more than enjoying ravishing each other's mouths. When she felt Rachel curl her tongue around her own she moaned and for just a moment forgot out to breathe from the wonderful pleasure she felt from that feeling, the sensations Rachel was giving her. This was definitely the most erotic kiss she'd ever had with Rachel by far. Things were getting extremely heated between them when Quinn finally pulled back from Rachel, trying to catch her breath to speak. She put her forehead against Rachel's as she attempted to catch her breath while Rachel was barely breathing any faster than she normally did. "Your breath control is amazing Rachel, here I am panting and here you are … sitting as though it was hardly anything."

Rachel smiled cockily and despite the fact that Quinn could mostly see only from Rachel's nose and up she could tell what Rachel's face looked like right now. She loved cocky Rachel, just loved Rachel for everything she was really, not that she'd tell the diva that right now. "I'm sure we can test out how good my breath control really is … later on in our relationship." The way Rachel said it was so suggestive Quinn felt a quiver in her body, from her spine down to her lower regions.

"You can be so cocky and downright evil some days Rachel, really, truly evil." Quinn closed her eyes and tried to control her hormones, to keep it in check and Rachel seemed to know that Quinn was having a war on her hormones right now because of the way she had her eyes clenched shut and something through their bond as soulmates seemed to be telling her these things.

"Are you … having trouble controlling your urges for me Quinn?" Quinn nodded but kept her eyes shut until she felt lips kissing her neck in such a sensual manner she had to open her eyes to witness it and there she was, kissing, nipping, and licking at her neck in a way that caused Quinn to moan into the otherwise silent apartment.

"God, Rachel, if you don't stop I'll … I'll," this was quite the turn of events because Quinn had been the one to be dominant just several minutes ago and she wasn't quite sure how Rachel had turned the tables on her and started dominating her instead.

"You'll what Quinn?" Rachel and her damn hot smirk caused more heat to come over Quinn's center and she couldn't quite believe that they had progressed to this part of their relationship already.

 _I want you so badly but I'm not ready yet_.

Rachel pulled away suddenly in surprise, "did I just hear your thoughts in my mind?" Quinn's brain hadn't quite caught up to Rachel's lips suddenly moving away from her because she was still concentrating on trying to think of things that would turn off her hormones.

 _Dead puppies. Rachel's soft lips. No! That one time I accidentally walked in on my grandpa going to the bathroom. Ew, that was so disgusting._

"Quinn, you shouldn't think about dead puppies and that sounds like a disturbing experience."

Startled, Quinn finally noticed that Rachel had seemingly read her thoughts because she was certain she hadn't spoken any of those things out loud just now and in spite of it Rachel knew.

 _I believe we can hear each other's thoughts now Quinn. And I'm quite glad that you find my lips so soft and irresistible._

Quinn's eyes widened in surprise upon hearing Rachel's thoughts in her mind. It was quite the development.

 _You're adorable Quinn, so utterly adorable. I'm going to kiss you now._ And with that thought Rachel's lips met Quinn's in a much softer and smoother kiss than the prior rough and passionate kisses they had been sharing. It was such a sweet kiss Quinn felt like she was melting into Rachel's soft lips and when they pulled away for air Quinn rested her head in the crook of Rachel's neck and let out a content sigh and Rachel could feel Quinn's smile on her lips as she pressed a soft kiss against her neck.

"I really like how cute and cuddly you are. It's like … you have a tough exterior with almost everyone else but around me, you're a gentle cuddle bear. You're like lion Quinn in front of everyone else, fierce and tough, and a lion cub around me, cute and adorable. Well, you're not always cute sometimes you're downright sexy and extremely hard to resist. Sometimes, even though we've only been together for not quite three months … I want to take that next step and thoroughly ravish your body before making sweet love to you because you bring something wild out of me." Rachel's words had, at first, made Quinn melt against her body in content but as Rachel started describing the ways she'd tempted Rachel in the past and made it hard for Rachel to resist Quinn felt herself becoming warm and heated in a certain region and she had just been trying to cool herself down too!

"Rachel, you know I'm absolutely crazy in love with you, and I'd really like for you to do all of those things and do them in return to you. I need you to stop tempting me with thoughts like that because you're unbelievably attractive to me and I'm trying to control myself right now. I feel like you're really tearing apart every piece of restraint I have with your words and the thoughts running through your head doesn't help either. I feel like you're breaking down some walls, barriers, I never even knew I had surrounding my heart and mind. My soul, as you know, has been yours since birth but … this feeling, these wants, these desires I have for you now, are things I've never even imagined myself feeling before. It's thrilling but also a little terrifying how much I want you, how much I've come to want to know everything about you and need you more than anything else in a way that is much more than the physical sense of those words. I've come to not only love you deeply but I also have this … necessity to be around you as much as I can and I can't help but wonder if you're feeling the same things, the same way too." The desperate look in Quinn's eyes was something similar to what Rachel had been feeling inside of herself as well.

With every word Quinn spoke, with every honest feeling flowing freely on her face, Rachel felt as if Quinn's emotions, Quinn's very soul was caressing her in a gentle but almost needy way. It was as if Quinn didn't know how to say she needed Rachel in words until that very moment. Of course both Quinn and Rachel were aware of the fact that they are soulmates but it was more than just knowing it … it was feeling it in raw form and powerfully in a way that hadn't occurred before this moment of brutal, candidness with passionate gazes and souls latching on to each other for further confirmation of what was happening between them. It was the most sensual but innocent feeling either had experienced in all of the time they had finally committed to their soulmate bond. It made them both ache with such intense feelings of complete wholeness that tears sprang to their eyes at the feeling of their souls combining again in a different way than their first kiss. Their souls weren't entirely whole just yet but they both knew simultaneously in this moment that they were quite close to having their souls bond and combine completely.

 _Thank you for being so truthful about how you're feeling because I think that you placing this trust in me just brought our souls even closer together. Can you feel it too?_

Smiling Quinn nodded, looking into Rachel's eyes and feeling as if Rachel's soul was staring right back at her through warm chocolate brown eyes. It was an amazing feeling to say the least, to know exactly how her soulmate was feeling and to know the thoughts she was thinking, it was strange but calming.

 _You'll have to excuse certain thoughts I have from time to time because … now that you can hear them … there's no hiding certain things anymore._

Rachel gave Quinn a puzzled look before thinking something back in response, _whatever do you mean by that Quinn?_

Blushing slightly Quinn gave Rachel a nervous look before thinking her thoughts. At least this way Quinn wouldn't ever have to really _say_ something embarrassing ever again. _Well, you know how sometimes I walk behind you instead of next to you?_

Eyes widening in shock Rachel actually spoke out loud in response this time, "Quinn, I don't know if my suspicions are correct with where you're going with this but if I'm right … well, I'll say I'm surprised but pleasantly surprised."

Nodding Quinn continued her thoughts, _I am looking at your ass and am in fact admiring it every time I walk behind you because well, it's so pleasant to look at and the way it jiggles … I can't help it. I usually get distracted by how long your legs are despite how short you are too._

"Hey! I am _not_ that short Quinn! I am only _slightly_ below average height!" Came Rachel's indignant response.

With a sneak attack kiss Rachel was distracted from such thoughts and indignation by Quinn's wonderful kissing skills, especially her silky tongue rubbing against hers in such a pleasant way before the kiss was broken too quickly for Rachel's tastes. "I really love you and everything about you. I just want to know even more about you than I already know. I want to know what sleeping habits you have, see what your morning routine is like in person, what your favorite shampoo is, what kind of things you like to cook for breakfast, well more like I'll cook because you apparently burn water according to Kurt. I just … I want to know these little things that happen when two people live together." The more Quinn spoke the more Rachel felt herself swooning inside up until Quinn mentioned, in a roundabout way, moving in together. Rachel lost her breath and couldn't really see anything in front of her for a moment until Quinn kissed her again and Rachel felt air rushing back into her as their tongues danced in a familiar way.

 _Do you even have to ask? Your place or mine or a new place though? My apartment is a bit small compared to your condo even though it is quite spacious for one person. I wouldn't mind moving to your place, Quinn._

Breaking away from the kiss Quinn's eyes and her very soul seemed to shine through as Rachel became lost in those hazel eyes with flecks of gold and brown reflecting back happily at her brown. Quinn's eyes seemed to become entirely green for a moment before the flecks of gold and brown mixed back in and the way Quinn's eyes seemed to shine back at her made Rachel's heart and soul swell with affection for her.

 _If you want to move in with me … I don't mind at all. And you're right about me having more space, more rooms. I … well, I kind of already have a room set up for your musical needs. It's the one room I never let you go in whenever you're there because I wanted to wait for this moment before letting you see everything inside. I won't tell you anything more than that it is your space and I have it soundproof in case you need to hit really high notes without disturbing the neighbors. So, if … when you move in … it's the first room I'd like to show you because I want to know what you think of it and if you think I might have missed something you'll need._

Rachel was the one to initiate their kiss this time and it was a soul searching kiss that made Quinn's head spin, her heart pound, and her soul react with a warm welcome to her soulmate's prodding. It was another spellbinding kiss that left both of them even closer, both of their souls one step closer to becoming whole.

 _You're so adorable Quinn, asking in such an indirect way for me to move in with you. I really love that I'm the one who brings out this side of you, the one that wants to say these things without really knowing how. I love you so much and of course I'll move in with you and take a look at this special room you've prepared for me. In fact, since you said it's soundproof … well, I think I know of another form of music it can be used to block out if you know what I'm getting at?_

Immediately Quinn felt certain she knew what suggestive thing Rachel was talking about because she felt a jolt run down her spine and center. Rachel was a devious one and Quinn loved that about her. Quinn ended up staying the night with Rachel wrapped innocently in her arms as they slept.

X

I know there was a really long wait for this chapter and I'm sorry! I had a lot of things going on the last month, such as a concert for BTS if any of my readers are fans of them! I decided to delve into the Fleurmione romance since so many readers seemed to like the fact that I added them. I'll try my best not to leave as long a gap in between chapters but no promises with school coming up in just another two weeks for me! Please read and review to tell me your thoughts!

姫宮光る


	5. Surprises

Chapter 5

Surprises

X

Rachel knew how stubborn Quinn could be and that was exactly why she had enlisted an unwilling Santana and a more than happy to comply Brittany, who was also the force behind Santana's cooperation. It wasn't as if Rachel didn't know what Quinn did and did not like but rather she wanted to make sure everything was perfect and what Quinn liked without any doubts gnawing in the back of her mind that she did something wrong or got something Quinn wouldn't like. She had a big surprise planned for Quinn and she knew that Quinn had no idea about it because she was always very careful to guard her thoughts around Quinn now, not that it was hard considering things had been getting more heated between them lately since Quinn was at her apartment last week and ended up sleeping over. They'd been visiting each other at home more often lately and each night things a little bit heavier, a little bit more heated, and Rachel was sure that they were heading towards adult territory in their relationship and Rachel couldn't believe that it had only been a little bit more than a month since they really got together, since the lunch date that changed everything. If Rachel didn't count them being official until their first date the numbers would be about three days less but either way it had been more than a month and they had yet to have any major problems other than Quinn pouting on their first date after Rachel paid for their dinner. Things had been smooth sailing since and Rachel wanted to give Quinn the biggest surprise for her special day.

Quinn's birthday, despite her never telling Rachel personally, was something Rachel was more than aware of as she only needed to ask one of her two best friends. Rachel was also vaguely aware that it was sometime most likely around the end of January or towards the beginning of February from Quinn's brief mention of when her parents had died from prior conversations they'd had with each other. And now that the day of had finally come Rachel had asked Brittany to occupy Quinn's attention for approximately three to four hours for her to have help from several friends to help her move into Quinn's condo since Quinn had been mentioning it much more recently about an exact date Rachel would be able to move in. Though it seemed a little fast for them to be moving in with each other already, technically they were bound to each other for life so, really, what was the point in waiting for the 'right time' to move in together if it was inevitable already? Rachel had Santana, Sam, Puck, Mercedes, Mike, Kitty, Kurt, Blaine, and Fleur and Hermione helping her out with moving things into Quinn's condo, as well as setting up the surprise party, in the room she had designated for Rachel to keep her extraneous things. Rachel was having the essentials moved into the bedroom she'd be sharing with Quinn of course and she had everything labeled to help expedite the process.

The ladies were taking care of her bathroom items and Santana was helping both moving teams to make sure things wouldn't go where Quinn wouldn't want them in various rooms. About half of the team was dedicated to just moving things into the apartment in the right places and the other half of the team were currently aiding in the surprise party that would take place upon Brittany's arrival back to the apartment with a blindfolded Quinn. When Rachel had asked Santana how in the world Brittany was going to be able to convince Quinn to blindfold herself Santana smirked and Rachel decided she most likely _didn't_ want to know the details.

Everything was going smoothly so far and Rachel was very grateful for the help and she was currently sorting out her kitchen items to fit in neatly into Quinn's own cooking utensils. Mostly Rachel had baking related kitchen items because her cooking skills were subpar but she was an excellent baker but was nowhere near patisserie levels good, she was working on that though. While Rachel was sorting through her things a voice startled her to the point of her jumping where she sat. "Hey, I was wondering where you got to, oh sorry." Sam's amiable voice sounded genuinely apologetic for startling Rachel so much to the point she jumped into the air from where she was on the floor.

"It's quite all right Sam but what did you come in here for? Is everything okay?" Rachel asked in quick succession after thinking that something could possibly have gone wrong considering how many people were in the condo at the present moment.

Sam quickly nodded his head to prevent Rachel from freaking out before he could get his message across to the dramatic diva. "Everything's fine, absolutely fine! Don't panic!" When it seemed Rachel wasn't going to become worked up he finally spoke up again, "okay, so, I was just going to ask your opinion of something for the things you've got. There's this box labeled 'Broadway Memorabilia' on it and we just wanted to know where you'd want that box put because I figure they're priceless things that we'd need to be careful with we'd ask you about it." Rachel was so touched by Sam's thoughtfulness to ask her because she was sure that between Sam, Puck, Mike, Mercedes, and Kitty both Sam and Mike were the two most likely to have taken this into consideration about her love of Broadway. Both men had actually come up to her separately and told her that they were fans of her while she was on Broadway and had seen a few of her shows before she decided to take a break from the stage to work on her music for a Grammy to complete the EGOT she was so close to achieving. "They also need your opinion about something over on the decorating team end."

Nodding her head Rachel thought it over for a moment before responding, "if you can, can you just set the box aside somewhere it won't get in the way but also somewhere someone isn't likely to trip over it? Perhaps the desk by Quinn's bedside would be best." Sam nodded his head and smiled. "Thank you for being so considerate Sam and can you also tell Team Pamela Lansbury, as Kurt insists on having us refer to the decorating team, that I will be over momentarily? I still need to sort just a few more things before I'm completely done with these boxes so they won't be in the way any longer. After I help Team Pamela Lansbury out, I will order some food for everyone. Oh! Go ask everyone what they'd like for brunch so I can order food from the appropriate restaurant based on what they want. Or maybe I can name a restaurant and everyone can take a look at the menu on their phone?" Rachel wasn't sure now.

"How about you just name a place close by and then I'll tell everyone to order whatever from the place you pick?" Sam asked.

Rachel nodded her head and gave him the name of the closest restaurant she could find on Yelp, which happened to be a favorite of hers, before asking him to write down their orders and going back to the box of kitchen essentials she had been working on. After several more minutes Rachel was done and Sam was still getting orders from another two people, the pickier people of the bunch, both Puck and Santana seemed to be glaring down at their phones in a manner that suggested that they might possibly dislike everything on the menu they were currently perusing. It made Rachel slightly nervous because if Santana didn't decide what she wanted soon it would hold everyone else back from getting their orders but only a moment later Santana looked up from the menu and finally walked over to Rachel after spotting her to tell her what she wanted. Puck glared down at his menu before finally settling on something that was the least likely to leave him feeling empty on meat intake based on the descriptions on the menu. Rachel was relieved that there was no major setback from the closest restaurant being vegan friendly.

As soon as the order was put in, and Rachel had already taken care of giving Kurt her opinion, Rachel got herself ready to walk over to pick up the food. Since there was such a high volume of people for the order Rachel asked two of the guys to come along to help her out, Sam and Mike volunteering to help out. Rachel figured there would about four or five bags for pick up since there was a total of eleven orders. The person who took her order said that they would be done in 15 minutes surprisingly, despite their large order, and so Rachel set off with Mike and Sam playing her bodyguards. They were wearing plain clothes, khaki shorts and t-shirts with humorous etchings on them, but they both walked so that they were a step behind her on each side and Rachel couldn't help the little giggle she let out upon seeing them with straight faces and she hadn't noticed them put sunglasses until she turned around to look at them.

"You two are so silly, you know that?" Rachel asked with a shake of her head.

"Miss, you know that we're not supposed to be distracted by conversation while we're walking around." Mike responded with a monotonous tone.

"I just realized something … we're both kind of famous Rachel. I hope the paps don't spot us and start taking a hoard of pictures of us since you're not wearing your sunglasses. Here," out of seemingly nowhere, Sam produced a visor for Rachel to put on her head. When she gave him a questioning look Sam shrugged, "I like to play tennis sometimes so … I keep a visor in my pocket." He seemed to think that it was completely normal to do such a thing and Rachel gave him a look that said she thought it was strange.

Upon arriving at _Sunshine's Vegan Best_ Rachel smiled at her friend who greeted her and then froze as her eyes settled on someone behind Rachel. Rachel was concerned and looked to her right to see that Mike was just as frozen until his eyes widened at the sensory overload from the world becoming colorful for him in a way that he never knew could be possible. Tina seemed to be having the same problem and eventually Tina spoke up, "y-you're my s-soulmate." It was a softly uttered sentence and her slight stutter was present for it, something that Tina was self-conscious about for years before she managed to get it under control when she wasn't nervous or shaken up.

The scene unfolding before both Rachel and Sam was rather interesting to witness since neither had been present for the moment two fated people actually met each other before and so this union they were currently beholding was a beautiful moment of finding completeness. This is the most beautiful moment in life and they were standing stock still as each second seemed to tick by slowly. After several more minutes of just staring at each other Mike finally spoke up, his voice full of awe and slightly shaky. "M-my name is Mike, Mike Chang, and what's your name?" he asked with a nervous smile. It was actually quite adorable to witness shy Mike blushing and actually talking, something he rarely did since he was more of an observer than anything else in a group of people, being the introvert that he was.

"M-m-me? I-I'm Tina C-Cohen-Chang. This is … rather unbelievable everything … the colors I've never seen before, the beauty of being able to see all of these colors around me. It's a little overwhelming to see colors when I've never seen anything but black, white, and gray my whole life. It is a nice change of pace and you have the nicest eyes I have ever seen Mike." Tina was the type who only seemed introverted until she got to know somebody and then she was ready to tell someone everything on her mind.

Smiling almost absently at the comment Mike took a moment to respond. "Do you maybe … want to get something to eat for dinner when your shift is over? I'd be more than happy to get to know you better." Mike asked, a slight flush on his tan cheek. Tina had a slight blush covering her cheeks as well and nodded her head in agreement to Mike's invitation for dinner.

"I'd really … I'd really like that Mike."

"Okay, so … as cute as the two of you are being right now I need to get back with the food before the people helping me out become too hungry and start either killing each other off or potentially turn to cannibalism while waiting for their food to arrive. I'd rather not have to clean up the bloody aftermath of Santana's perceived personality by the name of Snix which I assume must be the portmanteau for Santana and her love of breadsticks and who she turns into when she doesn't eat enough breadsticks to satisfy her personality. Now that I think about it it's a bit like a Snickers commercial except with breadsticks in their place." Tina, Mike, and Sam all stared at Rachel like she'd grown a second head as she continually rambled on about her thoughts about Santana's likelihood of turning to cannibalism and her analogy about Santana's other personality, Snix. After noticing the silence Rachel rolled her eyes at her motionless companions, "I need food to feed people before Santana gets crazy." After her much slower and shortened sentence everyone nodded their head and moved into action.

"Okay so, I had your card charged for you already and I have four big bags here for you and then one smaller bag with your favorite dessert, complimentary, since it's for a birthday, your soulmate's birthday no less. And you still need to tell me how you met your soulmate Rachel! Don't think I forgot about you always avoiding that subject for the last month lady!" Rachel sighed, having hoped that Tina _wouldn't_ notice the constant shift in conversation whenever she brought it up. Rachel had yet to even tell Kurt, and by extension Blaine, the full details since she had merely told them that she definitely met her soulmate somehow but had yet to discover her identity because they had seemingly bumped into each other and walked off without realizing it. Rachel wasn't sure why she hadn't told either of them yet but she kind of wanted to keep Quinn to herself for a few months first before selling her soul to the two devilish gossip mongers known as Tina, horrible at lying, Cohen-Chang and Kurt, can't keep his mouth shut, Hummel about such a beautiful, intimate meeting of souls.

Rachel sighed in defeat before she made up her mind and gave Tina a time stamp for asking questions because she knew this was the only way to keep Tina satisfied enough to leave her alone. "How about you ask me about it again in … four months' time?"

Tina narrowed her eyes at Rachel before bargaining her number, "three months."

"Three and a half."

"Three months Rachel."

"Three months and a week."

"Two months."

"Fine! Three months it is, Tina!" Smiling smugly at getting what she had wanted to begin with Tina gave Rachel the mother of all victorious smirks as she watched Rachel's eye twitch in annoyance. "Stop looking so smug or I'm going to drop it back to more than our agreed 3 months on account of unsportswomanlike behavior. You know I'll do it Tina," Rachel warned lightly causing Tina's smile to drop slightly.

"You wouldn't."

"I would and I have before so don't test me."

Eyes narrowed and face contemplative, Tina took Rachel's threat seriously. "Didn't you say you had to go back to feed some people helping you with something?"

"Oh, yes! That's right. Well, I'll be off Tina and I will text you Mike's cell phone number or just give him yours directly, however you want to do it."

A slight look of surprise took Tina's face as she had almost forgotten about how she had just met her soulmate due to Rachel's reluctance to talk about her own to her. "Just give Mike my number and text me his, extra carefully, so I won't accidentally text some stranger again because of one wrong number or something like last time."

Rolling her eyes Rachel muttered to herself about how all it took was one mistake and Tina had texted someone who said they were a matched soulmate pairing already and had been for the last 24 years of their lives. Tina had meant to jokingly text to a new friend about finally meeting her soulmate when that response was sent to her and she sent back profuse apologies to the other person and gave Rachel hell for the last two years over it every chance she got that she could bring it up without it being out of place.

Glaring at Rachel when she heard her muttering Tina said no more except a soft and shy "bye" to Mike as they left the restaurant behind.

X

Upon arriving back at the apartment Rachel was glad to see that everyone was still in one piece and no one, namely Santana, had resorted to killing someone else off yet to eat them for survival. Now, Rachel knew she had been watching too many survival shows and had read too many books like _Lord of the Flies_ lately because that was a seriously crazy thought to have. Everyone convened for a light lunch and continued to work until everything but decorating and getting the party prep started was done. Everyone chose to do things they knew were their strengths and things were going well until something, or rather someone, happened. Two words: Kurt Hummel. Those two words were all that was needed to be said to know that diva and crazy were being combined right now. And so it began.

Kurt was driving everyone on Team Pamela Lansbury crazy, he had kept the name despite the fact that the teams were now slightly different than when they had started about an hour and a half ago. Heck he was even driving the people who _weren't_ part of Team Pamela Lansbury crazy with his antics. Even the ever calm and collected Fleur seemed a bit on edge because of Kurt's rather extreme and demanding behavior. Currently Mike, Sam, and Puck, being the tallest men there, had their arms high above their heads in an attempt to hang a banner up in three folds. Mike was only shorter than the other two men by a single inch but that was enough of a height difference to make Kurt notice that his end of the banner wasn't quite as high as the other two. Finally fed up with Kurt's ridiculous insistence about the banner being crooked Rachel asked Mike to switch with Sam so that he was in the middle instead so that the other two could just drop theirs to be equal to as high as Mike could possibly reach, solving the 'uneven' problem Kurt was grumbling about. It was the last straw when Kurt insisted that Mike stretch himself up to be taller, causing everyone in the room to groan, roll their eyes, or have some kind of facial twitch in response.

"Okay, look, Kurt. _I'm her soulmate_ so no more of your ridiculousness. Let. It. Go or I will start singing that song at the top of my lungs, especially that high note that Idina Menzel herself can hardly reach easily while excusing everyone _but_ you from the room as I do so. Your ears will probably go deaf from that sheer volume alone." Rachel's threat caused a single bead of sweat to drop from Kurt's forehead, knowing that it wasn't just a threat but a promise of future events.

"All right, I'll allow it to stay where it is now, no more fussing. Let's continue on with the rest of our prep work, shall we?" As soon as those words were spoken the others in the room continued to bustle with their various assignments and tasks. Fleur and Hermione were cooking several different delicious dishes of vegan and non-vegan delight, Sam, Mike, and Puck were reluctantly helping Kurt organize decorations, Santana was overseeing the table set up with the help of Kitty, Mercedes, and Blaine, and Rachel was helping where she was needed between all three groups. Occasionally Rachel was asked to bring different food samples out for everyone to taste test to ensure everything tasted okay and if she wasn't busy doing that she was giving her opinion about several things that pertained to the setup of the decorations and the dining area. So far the dining area was being extended with two tables pushed together and chairs being squeezed in to fit at least 14 people, Tina had been invited to come over after her shift to not only get to know Mike better but also to catch up with both Blaine and Kurt a bit since they had come to visit specially for this occasion.

Now that Kurt had calmed down his crazy a bit things were going much more smoothly in the prep process when Santana suddenly announced loudly into the room, "hey all you bitches, listen up! I just got a text from Britt and it says that she's coming back with Quinn blindfolded now since she can't think of anything to distract Quinn with anymore. They'll be back in about half an hour! Is everything pretty much done?" Santana asked once she was done relaying her message to everyone.

"Did we remember a cake?" Someone asked, the voice sounding like Blaine's somewhere in the background.

"Shit, Rachel, I don't know if you got the cake or not?" Santana looked slightly panicked until she saw Rachel's smirk, "you little bitch, you never told me." Shaking her head, Santana gave Rachel props, "well, I have to give it to you for being sly on that one."

"I'm always prepared for anything and everything. I have a cake that everyone can enjoy and got myself a vegan favorite separately so everything is equal for us all." Rachel announced.

"Well, the dishes are primarily done. We just need some help loading them up on to plates and bowls and carrying them over to the table to be served," the rather posh voice of Hermione came from somewhere in the kitchen. At once several bodies stood up to help. With everyone on board to help the dishes were loaded onto the table within 10 minutes and the table was set within another 5 and everyone was making sure there were no last minute things to be found or done. The candles were placed into the closest cabinet to the refrigerator, the lighter in there with it, and everyone had made sure to sign Quinn's birthday card before turning all of the lights off and finding various hiding spots when someone announced that they probably only had a few minutes left to spare.

The anticipation mounted with every passing second before they finally heard a key being inserted into the door while a few voices they knew to be either Brittany or Quinn spoke on the other side of the door. When the door open what was being said was apparent, "I don't know why but all of the lights are off in your apartment Quinn."

Letting out an exasperated sigh Quinn spoke, "Brittany, I can't see anything anyways with this blindfold on. I really don't know why you think that walking around and being driven around with a blindfold on is a necessary experience."

"I told you! I watched that movie, _Enough_ , with San the other day and I want to know if you can move around your own apartment blindfolded or not and just feel your way around with either your arms or your foot! I wanted to make sure you aren't cheating by blindfolding you in the car!" Brittany said excitedly.

Someone poked their head out from their hiding spot when Quinn asked Brittany another question. "Didn't you mention something about having Rachel standing somewhere in the apartment for me as part of my test? I have to find her somewhere in here don't I?" Brittany nodded, forgetting that Quinn couldn't see her. "Britt?"

"Oh, yeah, yes. Sorry, I nodded because I forgot you can't really see me. I'm not giving you hints but Rachel is only allowed to call out your name only 4 times before she stops and you have to find her without any guidance. If you succeed then you'll get a prize!" Brittany said excitedly, looking around for Rachel in the apartment. Rachel, having heard Brittany's rules decided to stand somewhere that wasn't too easy but not extremely difficult to get to inside of the apartment. As soon as she was positioned and ready Rachel called out to Quinn in her normal speaking voice.

"Quinn, I'm here." Rachel said, seeing how quickly Quinn's head snapped in the direction of Rachel's voice, almost eerily accurate. When Quinn took a step forward Rachel called again, "Quinn." Quinn made sure to turn so that her ears were facing towards where she heard Rachel's voice and started to move steadily across the room. When Quinn looked like she was close to running into something Rachel sought Quinn out with her own mind, _though I detest dishonesty and loathe anything to do with cheating I can't stay silent, giggle, about the fact that you are going to hurt yourself by running into a table if you don't move over to the right about four steps Quinn_. Quinn, knowing that it would seem suspicious if she suddenly just turned, stuck her leg out to make it seem like she was making sure of something before taking a few steps away from a solid object that was most likely her table or chair. With each step Rachel felt her heart pound in excitement and she was so lost in the moment she didn't notice Brittany slowly making her way to where the light switches were as she called out again. "Quinn. I only have one more call." Quinn was now only about 10 feet away from Rachel's current position, causing Rachel's heart to thud even faster in anticipation. When Quinn was within feet of her Rachel called one last time, "Here I am, Quinn." And Quinn reached her arm out to touch Rachel and was met by gentle hands guiding her closer before those same hands were untying the makeshift blindfold from her eyes.

The very moment the blindfold was removed from her eyes the lights were turned on as everyone jumped from their hiding spots and shouted, "SURPRISE!" in unison, watching the birthday woman jump slightly at the unexpected volume in combination with the surprise of so many people being in her apartment.

"God, you almost gave me a heart attack on my own birthday! How did you even—"

"Rachel—"

"Santana!" several voices said at the same time. Upon hearing someone say her name Rachel immediately yelled the guilty Latina's name to absolve herself of any blame.

With an arched eyebrow, Quinn directed her gaze at Santana, who in turn arched her own eyebrow back. "I did the hobbit a favor all right. No way are you going to do anything about this except eat your damn food and slice up the cake and eat that shit too Fabray." Santana got a gentle smack and disapproving gaze from Brittany at calling the cake shit. "I mean, eat that cake too."

"Well, at least tell me who organized all of this at least?" Rachel's guilty look but proud smile gave away the answer and Quinn bent down to give her a soft but innocent kiss on the lips. _I truly love you so much and can't imagine being able to love you any more than I already do and then you do something that causes my heart to melt a bit further, love you even more down to my soul. Perhaps every day I love you more and more._

Rachel nuzzled into Quinn's neck when they pulled away. "You're such a diehard romantic Quinn and I agree with all of that." _I can't wait until I get you alone tonight and you see more of the surprises ahead that I have planned for you after everyone leaves._ "Oh, Tina should be stopping by in about another hour or so since her shift just ended a little bit ago, that is, if it's okay with you?"

Nodding her head and giving Rachel an affectionate kiss on the top of her head, Quinn smiled widely when she heard a camera flash. "I just had to take that picture! You guys are so cute!" Brittany gushed at the blushing couple.

"Let's get this party started! I'm so glad that you did all of this for me and thank you all for attending and helping my love organize all of this for me." Quinn said to everyone, looking them all in the eye individually.

"You know it girl!"

"Damn straight! No way would I miss this considering you two are anything but straight!"

"It was our pleasure, and we'd been meaning to visit Rachel anyways."

"Rachel, _still_ , hasn't told me all of the details about you two getting together!"

"Well, you are my boss and all that jazz."

"Anything to help you out … anything but Kurt being in charge next time though. Dude, no offense meant Kurt!"

"I second that, Sam. Kurt's so demanding and I'm not short!"

"It's such a pleasure to help out with planning a surprise party! You've always treated me well and I do consider you a friend after all."

"I just hope next time, 'Ermione and I have more help in the kitchen for cooking the food."

"Well, midget didn't pay me a dime so you're welcome Quinnie the pooh!"

"San, be nicer!"

"I love you."

All in all the party went off without a hitch and everyone had a great time and Mike's eyes lit up when Tina finally arrived at the party, the prettiest girl he had ever seen in his life without a doubt. After everyone was done eating, and without ever planning it, someone played some music through some speakers at some point during the birthday celebration and the music was a pretty eclectic collection with songs in English, Spanish, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean and ranging from Rap and Hip-Hop to ballads and sad songs. Whoever played the music was conscious of keeping the music loud enough to enjoy but soft enough not to bother any of Quinn's next door neighbors, some very snooty looking older ladies.

Surprisingly enough Fleur and Hermione seemed to be quite the fluid dancers but it appeared to be mostly with the timeless and classical waltz as their area of expertise as well as a rather sexualized performance of the tango, much to Santana's delight. Santana was quite impressed when they were done and gave a hearty clap that everyone else joined in on after the shock wore off a bit for them, watching the two women breathe a bit heavily due to exertion.

The next pair to dance were both Brittany and Mike, Mike surprising everyone with his dancing talent. Mike definitely had moves and after his dance off with Brittany Quinn approached Mike and asked him to walk with her over to a slightly secluded corner. "Why have you never mentioned you can dance like that? I definitely like you for security but you are much better suited for dancing." Quinn, though quiet as ever, was quite excited by this revelation.

Mike looked down shyly, "well, my dad … he would never support me when it came to dancing and he always told me to get a real job that makes me real money. My mom … she supported me in secret but my dad is the one who made money so she could never tell me to stand up to him and do what I really want. I was supposed to go to school for a master's degree in either the medical profession or to be a lawyer, but I quit school after two years and went from job to job until you started Fabray Records about 5 years ago. So, the rest is history."

With the way Quinn was staring at him intently, Mike knew that something important was about to happen here, that the next thing out of Quinn's mouth was going to be important. "I would love it if you thought about joining Fabray Records as a choreographer for whoever you choose to work with. I know I have both Brittany and Cassandra but I'm scouting more and more talent as the years go by and I know I'll need you and you can even help them by taking some of that load off of their shoulders to help them get more of a flexible schedule. I know that they love dancing but everyone needs a break sometimes. You can even just go about it by helping them out and being just a consultant for now. I want better for you and I'd like you to think about it, whether it's right for you or not Mike, the choice is yours to make." Mike was sure he had never heard Quinn speak this much before to anyone other than Rachel.

Smiling widely Mike gave Quinn an answer right away. "Well, I thought about it and I want to do it. Just tell me when and where and I'll be there right away. This is my dream come true and I don't want to waste an opportunity like this by thinking about it anymore. I want to start as soon as humanly possible."

Laughing softly at Mike's words in response, Quinn glanced over at Brittany enjoying a rather sinful dance with Santana, shaking her head at the couple grinding suggestively. "How about we discuss this in further detail on Monday and I'll have Brittany and Cassandra there for our meeting? You can start right away after we all come to an agreement. I know for sure that Brittany is going to be okay with it all things considered. Cassandra … I'm sure she can be persuaded even if she is a bit of a stubborn woman. I'll make sure to up your paygrade appropriately starting Monday onwards."

Unexpectedly Mike took Quinn into his arms in a warm and happy hug before pulling back. "You really don't have any idea what this means to me Quinn! I really appreciate this opportunity and I won't let you down! I promise you this, you won't regret having me as a choreographer!"

"I know I won't Mike."

Nodding Mike stood up and began dancing majestically to the beat of the music, a beautiful figure made to dance.

Before Quinn realized what was happening she felt someone sit right on top of her lap and nuzzle into her neck. "You're really so sweet Quinn. I heard all of your thoughts just now by accident. I was just wondering where you had gone when I reached out to you and heard you offer Mike a job as a choreographer and then I tuned out but I couldn't help but watch you two speaking. You're truly a woman after my heart and soul … except you've had both since long before I was even born I'm sure."

Pressing a soft kiss to Rachel's forehead Quinn merely hummed in agreement. "So, my songbird, all of these surprises for me and you said you have one more yet?"

Giving Quinn a mischievous smirk Rachel spoke into the shell of Quinn's ear, "when everyone leaves and we go to your bedroom, you'll see."

Shuddering from the purely sensual sound and quality to Rachel's voice, Quinn almost wanted to kick everyone out of her condo immediately but resisted and made sure to send Rachel a silent message through their mind link. _You are one evil woman some days Rachel, you truly are_. Rachel giggled into Quinn's ear before pressing a kiss there.

"Let's just say I won't have to ever worry about going back to my own apartment again."

Eyes widening Quinn pulled back and looked into Rachel's open and warm eyes. "You mean …?" At Rachel's nod Quinn's face broke into the largest smile Rachel had ever seen on her face, "I love you. This really is the happiest birthday of my life." Kissing softly and awaiting the right moment to kick everyone out, they sat in their little corner, undisturbed by everyone at the party. Even Santana had decided to behave for her best friend's birthday party, something of a miracle in everyone's eyes.

Quinn definitely marked this as a good surprise.

X

Why this chapter took so long, I was given a bunch of extra hours at work for some reason and then I got hit by a car today on the way to get some food with my sisters. My older sister was driving and I was the only one on the passenger side as we pulled out of our parking spot, my sister was changing gears, when another vehicle suddenly pulled out and gently slammed (oxymoron but true statement) into our car and after hitting us repeatedly, trying to back out as if she couldn't see us sitting there getting hit by her vehicle multiple times. She then had the nerve to ask us why we didn't see her backing out when she had in fact hit our stationary car and continued to do so despite not getting any results from her attempt to reverse. Well, luckily she didn't hit the car hard enough to do any major damage other than causing me to nearly throw up from almost having an asthma attack after the adrenaline rush left me and probably giving me mild whip lash because I'm pretty sore too.

姫宮光る


	6. Ready

Chapter 6

Ready

X

Rachel watched Puck meet his soulmate in the form of one tall figure by the name of Finn Hudson a few weeks ago when Puck had been in a fender bender and went to get his car fixed by none other than Kurt's stepbrother, seeing as Kurt assured a discount from his family. Never one to turn down cheaper prices Puck readily agreed to it and met Finn Hudson on that fateful day. Rachel, and everyone else in their circle of friends, had to now endure the portmanteau that Puck had come up for their couple name, 'Fuck' and every time she heard it now she couldn't help but become a bit pink in the cheeks at how obscene and ridiculous the thought was. It was Puck after all so no one expected any better from him but it was still hoped for some times that the name would be let go of eventually.

Sam met a guy named Spencer Porter when he was on a jog around the park close to his apartment building and he suddenly fell over from seeing colors for the first time and Spencer realized that Sam was his soulmate because they had bumped into each other the same moment colors exploded into their field of vision. Helping Sam up and asking if he was okay was the first step before they fell madly and adorably in love with each other.

It was a long time coming for Sebastian Smythe. One too many times he had blown potential clients off, one too many times he had acted arrogant despite his lowly position in the company, and it had finally caught up to him and gotten him fired. Quinn had been looking to hire Spencer, after finding out about his talent to both sing and play a few instruments, a girl with a killer voice and guitar skills named Dani, and an eccentric but amazing singer named Elliot when she saw Sebastian's irresponsible behavior for herself first hand. She had been looking for a reason to fire him since she first met him officially a few months after he was hired nearly six months prior. She had been sick the day of his hire and so she hadn't met him immediately after he was hired by a five person vote with Brittany as her stand in. She should have known better than to let the other people vote without her there. She was, without doubt, the best judge of character for the people she was looking to hire for her company's image because she could see a person for who they were with the bare minimum contact she had with them during interviews and that was also why Jesse had been hired without knowing she was the founder of the company.

Sebastian had had a similar experience to Jesse's with embarrassing himself in front of her by asking her who she thought she was when she had found him being negligent to a potential client a few days after he had been hired. He had told a client that they were to follow the hallway until they found the right room as he walked away from them when he nearly ran into Quinn who proceeded to ask him why he was walking away from the potential client only for him to ask her with irritation who she thought she was. Quinn's response had been to pull out her business card and say, "I'm Quinn Fabray and I _know_ I'm your boss so clean up your act and go do your job right and apologize to the client, show them to the right room, and offer them a meal to be paid by you out of pocket and for them to get free services from you for the next week. By that I mean that if they want water you had better get them the water they _want_ and treat them how they deserve to be treated: with respect." After that Sebastian, though still a smarmy bastard to all of his co-workers, was more careful about how he treated clients for a few months until he started to become comfortable again. Quinn wasn't sure who she was happier to be rid of but she couldn't be happier to have both Jesse and Sebastian out of her company because their behavior was ludicrous and they were the only two employees she couldn't stand amongst her staff, though a few people were questionable at times.

"Quinn, stop or else we're both going to be late for work." Rachel whined, not impeding Quinn's concentrated kisses against her neck in the least. In fact Rachel felt a smirk against her neck when she groaned because Quinn was nipping at Rachel's sensitive neck, the area that always got Rachel excited. "Quinn, please, I need to … need to … work … work on … unh … ah, MUSIC!" This caused Quinn to pause momentarily in thought. Rachel knew this was her chance, "and we can always 'conserve water' you know. I know how much you enjoy that particular activity." Not giving Rachel a chance to respond any further Quinn picked Rachel's naked form off of the bed and immediately placed her gently on the toilet seat before turning the shower on and making sure the water was the right temperature before pinning Rachel against the shower wall and having her wicked way with her, not that Rachel minded in the least and the bond certainly made it much more pleasurable. Now that they had fully bonded, being sexually fulfilled was essentially the last step before two souls were completely bonded, they could hear each other's thoughts and feel each other's pleasure on top of occasionally being able to see their soulmate's soul through the connection of eye contact and feeling intense emotions, such as love for each other. They were never happier and things that they had never thought possible were occurring.

Though technically neither Quinn nor Rachel had a specified time they needed to be at Fabray Records today … noon was a bit of a late time to come in and Quinn knew she was in for some teasing from Santana and Brittany's lack of filter. It was so worth it though.

X

Though no one in the world really knew how the soulmate bond made it so that no matter what gender a person's soulmate was they would always be able to have children, even for same sex couples. Soulmates who were both women could have children, depending on who wished to carry the child through the soul being fully bonded, by having one endowed with a certain 'jewel' that allowed children to be created. For soulmates in which both genders were men the opposite happened and one would be endowed with a 'pearl' in order for a child to be born, a mysterious but extremely good system. So after being married for a few years and enjoying the freedom of freely showing affection Quinn and Rachel were ready to start a family and had been actively having passionate sex until finally Rachel was with child and they couldn't wait for their child to be born.

A similar occurrence had happened to Brittany and Santana just the year before and they had triplets they named Brinley, Brandon, and Savanah. Kurt couldn't have been more excited when Blaine conceived their now two year old son Kain, and Finn and Puck's baby girl Hannah was just a few weeks old now. They couldn't be happier with the life they had created together but now Puck had to worry about swearing around their baby girl and certain other things he did and said that she would be learning from him before he knew it and he didn't want her learning such filthy words at such a young age.

Everyone was building a life together and everyone knew they were ready for anything coming their way, whether it was a child or new love coming through the door for those still waiting to meet their soulmates later on in life. Things were coming along nicely and everyone was happy with the direction their life was going, especially Rachel and Quinn.

Quinn was currently fussing over her pregnant wife and Rachel, though she loved Quinn dearly, was getting slightly fed up with all of her worry and the infrequent (lack of) sex between them now that Quinn was worried about the baby. "I'm only two months pregnant Quinn. The baby is not going to feel it if we have sex right now and in all actuality I am a pregnant, horny woman and so I demand that you fuck me into this bed right now or so help me I will do it myself without your help Quinn!" Not knowing if Rachel was serious or not Quinn finally decided to concede to Rachel's wishes and proceeded to make Rachel moan her name for the next few hours until they both felt sated and content, lying naked in each other's arms.

"That was pretty amazing Rachel. I've always said that you have amazing breath control and it definitely comes in handy." This caused a smirk to paint Rachel's smug features, knowing that Quinn still found her desirable despite the fact that her belly was already starting to show just very slightly.

"Well, you're going to have our next child Quinn. I can't wait to see you with the so called pregnant glow that I have yet to witness for myself. I can't wait to find out if our baby is going to be a boy or a girl. I have a feeling that we're having a girl though, I can just feel it."

"Maybe you'll have our girl and I might have a boy for us. For all you know this baby is going to be a boy and I'm going to have a girl instead Rachel."

"You know what Quinn, I just know that no matter what gender our child is we will love them unconditionally and now that horribly pronounced song of the same title by Katy Perry is stuck in my head. Sing me something to get that song out of my head Quinn! Please hurry!"

Laughing at her completely insane wife Quinn started singing Rachel's other favorite song to hate, one that she admittedly disliked as well, "And I was like baby, baby, baby,"

"NO! Stop it Quinn, you evil, evil woman! I'll sing that red solo cup song! Or better yet, ~Let it go, let it go~"

"Okay, okay! I give up Rachel, you win! I will sing something else though if it will make you happy my beautiful wifey." Feeling Rachel nod against her Quinn thought of a song that meant something special them both.

 _If these are the last words that I'll ever say_

 _I want you to know you're loved in every way_

 _Just saying the words "I love you" aren't always enough_

 _I don't need to act prideful, I don't need to be tough_

 _I just want you to know that I'll always choose you_

 _You're my one and only eternal flame, it's true_

 _The only reason I'm still standing her today_

 _The reason I'm always going to stay_

 _There are so many thoughts and words stuck in my head_

 _I can't always say them so I'll just write them down instead_

 _This love song, our beautiful love story is written here_

 _All thoughts and memories of you I hold so dear_

 _You've never let me down before_

 _Even not knowing what's in store_

 _You're my gift from the heaven's above_

 _The reason I'm able to breathe and love_

 _Never before have I ever felt so much_

 _Just from a single look and touch_

 _Can you hear my heartbeat so fast?_

 _This kind of feeling with always last_

 _There are so many thoughts and words stuck in my head_

 _I can't always say them so I'll just write them down instead_

 _This love song, our beautiful love story is written here_

 _All thoughts and memories of you I hold so dear_

 _You know you're the only one for me_

 _I show you that you the only one I see_

 _Everything you do makes me love you more_

 _Head to toe I love you to the very core_

 _There are so many thoughts and words stuck in my head_

 _I can't always say them so I'll just write them down instead_

 _This love song, our beautiful love story is written here_

 _All thoughts and memories of you I hold so dear_

X

Several months later they found out they had been blessed with fraternal twins they decided to name Quinton and Rachelle and Rachel vowed to never have another child again and insisted that Quinn carry their next set of children. Rachel might or might not have heavily implied to Quinn that she wanted her to have a set of twins as well. Quinn was slightly unenthusiastic about the idea since they already had a set of twins to contend with and, luckily enough, they were quiet babies who slept well throughout the night and took long naps during the day. Not only that but because Quinn was in charge of Fabray Records she was allowed to give Rachel her maternity leave for as long as she needed it without Rachel even so much as saying a word to Quinn. As soon as Rachel was in her sixth month of pregnancy Quinn hardly allowed Rachel to do any heavy lifting and she also cut Rachel down to being at the company to just a few hours each day so she didn't overwork herself.

Quinton was born with blonde hair like Quinn and brown eyes like Rachel while Rachelle was born with light brown hair, a mixture between both of her parents' hair, and hazel eyes just a shade darker and greener than Quinn's. They were beautiful and as they grew older, their beauty was more apparent. Quinton was a handsome boy and Rachelle was a beautiful girl and both took after their musical parents. Quinton played piano and violin just like Quinn and had a soothing singing voice while Rachelle had powerful vocals like Rachel and was talented with the cello and flute instead. They made quite the pair at school, being popular with both sexes of the school for being as good looking as their parents.

Fleur and Hermione also had an offspring on the way a few months before the Berry-Fabray twins were born, and they had an identified set of twin girls, and they jokingly said that it would be funny if they ended up being each other's soulmates in life and they found out as soon as both twins ended up meeting each other. Quinton and Rachelle were both a year old and Adele and Harley were only six months old. Both children were highly intelligent and were soon found to be prodigies in different areas of studies. Adele, being a mathematical prodigy, excelled in both musical composition and mathematic rhetoric. Harley was gifted in being able to pick up many languages swiftly and by the age of ten years old spoke French, Spanish, Italian, Chinese, and Japanese on top of English fluently.

Mike and Tina were proud parents of Mai, soon to be three years old, and their newest addition to the family Tim. Cassandra and Holly had only one daughter so far, Cally, and they doted on her because she was an only child. And the last couple to have children were Sam and Spencer, since they met last, and after everyone else had already had kids they had yet to have any. The oldest kids, Brinley, Brandon, Savanah, Mai, and Kain were already in second grade together while Hannah, Quinton, and Rachelle were in first grade. Adele, Harley, and Tim were in kindergarten together while Cally was in pre-school. Sam and Spencer had their first child, Gavin, in December and couldn't be happier to have a baby boy. Not long after Gavin was born his younger sister was conceived and just a year later Samantha was born into a lot of protective family members. Because she was the youngest she was completely doted on by everyone and though she should have been spoiled rotten by it, she was only more blessed for it and as they all grew older and started noticing certain changes within their inner circle of friendship they became aware of the bindings of fate as they all paired up with their soulmates.

Quinton and Adele found happiness together while Rachelle and Harley found their happiness with each other as well. Mai and Gavin turned out to be soulmates while Tim and Gavin found that they were each other's other half. Kain and Hannah found eternal love while Brinley and Cally fell in love Brandon couldn't keep his eyes off of Samantha and they all wrote their own love stories with their fated soulmates.

They all fulfilled their own love stories and watched as their own children grew up and found theirs as well. Quinton and Rachelle both took over Fabray Records when their mother was ready to retire and hand over the reins, albeit reluctantly on her part.

X

Since I've noticed a lack of reviews I'm going to cut this story shorter. I'm so disappointed in how high my follow count is in comparison to how low my review count is. So, folks I'm ending this story early because the lack of reviews is very discouraging. Sorry to my loyal reviewers, LaurenKnight13, Gothic Phoenix, and Harley Quinn Davidson you three are awesome so I wanted to mention the three of you, if you wanted a longer story. And as they say, that's all she wrote. Hopefully my next story gets a better reception.

姫宮光る


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